Violence, unsavoury comments typical of CPM, says KK Rema

K K Rema. Photo: Manorama Online.

Kozhikode: Former minister M M Mani sparked a controversy in the Kerala Legislative Assembly by his unsavoury remark on Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP) leader K K Rema, close on the heels of incendiary speeches against her by CPM central committee member Elamaram Kareem and Kozhikode CPM district committee secretary P Mohanan.

While Kareen termed her arrogant and betrayed the organisation, Mohanan called her a traitor. Mani affronted her saying, "A great woman had spoken against the Chief Minister and the LDF government. She is a widow. It is her fate. We are not responsible."

Mani's apparent affront was in retaliation to Rema criticising Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's law enforcement policy. Her husband, RMP leader T P Chandrasekharan, was brutally hacked to death by "CPM sympathisers" in May 2012.

Rema, frequently targeted by CPM leaders, however, remained unfazed. "We, as party workers and women, have sacrificed the maximum for the party, and hence their threats are not new. They should realise that RMP workers will not be bogged down by their tactics," she said in a conversation with Manorama Online."

Elamaram Kareem has said KK Rema is arrogant since she had managed to mislead a few people into standing by her?
Elamaram Kareem made the almost hour-long speech at the CH Ashokan memorial meeting. You should listen to it, to realise what politics such a senior leader had spoken to their party cadre.

He said RMP is arrogant because it managed to mislead a few people into supporting it. He went on to say that the MLA post was a reward for betraying a larger organisation.

The MLA post is not a big deal. Elamaram Kareem also said that CH Ashokan was martyred by that group (RMP).

On unsavoury allegations
We have been hearing such allegations ever since RMP was formed in 2008.

Class enemy, traitor, renegade, etc., are the terms CPM has been using against us. When someone leaves a political party and forms a new one, shouldn't it be opposed politically? CPM does not have such a political sense.

So, it's CPM's wont to insult political rivals with unsavoury comments rather than taking them on politically. They have unleashed violence against us several times. Kerala has seen all these violence in Vatakara and Onchiyam, among others.

P Mohanan has said that the MLA post was a reward for betraying Onchiyam?
I became an MLA one year and two months ago. CPM did not feel all this while that I am a traitor. Do you know why they have come up with the tale of betrayal now? They are facing allegations within and outside the State Assembly. My truths are scalding them, and that explains CPM leaders' current desperate move.

Revolution has turned Onchiyam red. When we left CPM and formed RMP, the whole of Onchiyam was with us. Even the living martyrs took by us, held RMP's red flag high, and remained so until death. Is the CPM viewing them too as traitors? We have noticed that CPM leaders target RMP with cheap allegations whenever their party is in a crisis.

Why did Elamaram Kareem make such a speech even 14 years after RMP was formed? They are still pursuing a vendetta even after murdering TP Chandrasekharan. The speeches are reflecting their intolerance. Otherwise, why are they delivering provocative speeches while there are no issues in Vatakara or Onchiyam?

We are proud that ours is the real communist party. We reached the State Assembly without surrendering communist politics before any capitalist.

I stepped into the Assembly as the descendant of communist leader A K Keluvettan. My political works are based on the pride that I carry as Keluvettan's descendant. Elamaram Kareem or MM Mani's speeches could do nothing to us.

Elamaram Kareem's leader Pinarayi Vijayan made a speech in Vadakara, saying we will be eliminated. They made it happen also. We have sacrificed, especially what a woman could, the maximum to reach this stage. Their threats cannot terrorise RMP.

"Who betrayed communism"
We have not surrendered our communist tradition to any one, which is beyond the comprehension of neo-capitalist communist like Kareem. We take up the issues the people have been facing.

CPM had avoided speeches of vendetta for a while, but has started it again. They can't tolerate others pointing out the issues in the assembly, and criticising the leaders they idolise as gods. But we will keep going forward.

You should listen to Kareem's speech to understand the kind of politics he is promoting. What democratic sense is he upholding? "There is an advocate in Kozhikode. I abhor even naming him," Kareem said in his speech. He was referring to our senior advocate K P Kumaran Kutty. One may follow any political ideology, but is this the way to talk?

Kareem does not know that my father is still proud of the communist party. I know how Kareem, once a contract worker in Gwalior Rayons at Mavoor, became the Elamaram Kareem as we see now.

I won't divulge it since it is not politically correct. But Kareem should often recall that everyone knows about it.

Why RMP decided not to contest polls alone
We had once decided to contest the polls alone, and because of that largesse, you got an MLA from Vadakara in 2016.

You (CPM) rewarded us by attacking our party office within hours of announcing the election result. We were not your main rival in Vatakara. Still, you attacked our party workers.

We were going alone till 2012, without the backing of any other party. CPM killed TP Chandrasekharan in 2012, who used to say that he would never vote for Congress, even if he had to back CPM anytime in future. We fought against the fascism of CPM.

We want to be involved in political work, and we have decided to accept the support of democratic political forces. Several people who love communist party are with us. And that is what spurs us ahead. We are proud of their support. CPM is not big enough to teach politics to RMP. 

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