Kochi: The Congress in Kerala has made it clear that it wants to escalate the controversy over the meeting between CPM veteran E P Jayarajan and BJP national leader Prakash Javadekar which played out in the final days of the campaign.
A day after the polling for the Lok Sabha polls in the state, Leader of the Opposition V D Satheesan pointed fingers at Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan if Jayarajan was sent to Javadekar by the CM as his messenger.
Satheesan said the chief minister has flayed only the friendship between Jayarajan and 'Dallal' Nandakumar, and he did not have any problem in the meeting between the two leaders.
"The chief minister asked what is wrong with Jayarajan meeting Javadekar. He said he has also met Javadekar several times. Why should the LDF convener Jayarajan who is also a CPM central committee member, meet Javadekar the BJP leader in charge of Kerala? He should make it clear if they discussed a business deal or political deal. Was Jayarajan sent as a messenger of the chief minister to settle the Lavalin and CMRL-payoff cases? That is why Vijayan is not criticising the meeting," Satheesan told media at Paravur on Saturday.
He repeated the criticism that Vijayan has made Jayarajan a scapegoat. "The CPM should clarify why did the chief minister and other party leaders held discussions with Javadekar. Jayarajan who honoured Nandakumar's mother on her birthday is saying he does not know Nandakumar. Pinarayi knows well about Jayarajan's connections with Nandakumar. Why didn't he report it to the party politburo or state leadership and warn Jayarajan," Satheesan asked.
Satheesan said the Enforcement Directorate's investigation into the Karuvannur bank scam and the CMRL-payoff scams were only aimed at pressurising the CPM to support the BJP in the Lok Sabha polls.