Alappuzha continues to witness internal unrest within the CPM, despite the Left party's efforts to suppress factionalism ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
In the most recent development, four members of the party affiliated with the Kannarkad local committee under the Kanjikkuzhy area committee have chosen not to renew their party membership. Their protest stems from the party's decision to reinstate P Sabu, previously accused of vandalising the P Krishna Pillai Memorial.
The dissenting party workers, identified as Tanima, Ajay Thejass, Sujatha and Beena, remain steadfast in their decision despite the intervention of the local secretary urging them to renew their membership.
Party sources said that those who chose not to renew their membership had previously testified against the accused during a trial in the Alappuzha district and sessions court.
Following his acquittal, local committees in Alappuzha advocated for Sabu's return to the party, a move sanctioned by the CPM state committee. However, four others, initially arrested in the case along with Sabu, are yet to be reinstated.
The vandalism incident occurred on October 31, 2013, when local residents discovered an attempt to burn the memorial to Pillai, the founder of the communist movement in Kerala. The thatched house where Pillai died on August 14, 1948, from a snake bite while living incognito, was also destroyed during the attack.
A crime branch team arrested Latheesh B Chandran, former personal staff of Achuthanandan, Sabu, and CPM workers Rajesh Rajan, Pramod and Deepu in connection with the attack.
Subsequently, they were expelled from CPM. With the general election around the corner, the CPM has embarked on a significant organisational restructuring within its Alappuzha district unit. As part of this overhaul, MLA P P Chitharanjan and M M Sathyapalan, who were demoted due to factionalism eight months ago, have returned to the district secretariat.
Simultaneously, the long-disbanded area committees in Haripad and Alappuzha have been reconstituted with the appointment of new secretaries.
