(Left) CPM leader E.P. Jayarajan (Right) BJP leader Sobha Surendran
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Sobha Surendran revealed that not only CPM-left Left Democratic Front (LDF) Convener EP Jayarajan, but also about seven senior CPM leaders have initiated discussions with BJP leadership. Sobha Surendran, BJP national executive member and BJP/LDF candidate in Alappuzha parliamentary constituency, revealed this while talking to media persons in Palakkad on April 26 immediately after casting her vote in Alathoor, Palakkad district. She said that several people joined the BJP after realising that it (BJP) is, by all means, better than their own parties.
Sobha said that many people in her party had laid down their lives for the bigger cause in Kannur district. It has happened all over the state. RSS/BJP workers Nandu and Renjith Sreenivasan were killed in Alappuzha by the terrorists as they enjoyed the patronage of the ‘political leadership’. She was referring to the alleged CPM soft corner for religious fundamentalists. Sobha alleged that the flags of People’s Democratic Party (PDP) were displayed along with the flags of LDF constituents during the election campaign of Alappuzha’s sitting MP (LS) AM Arif. He belongs to CPM and is the only LDF member in the current Lok Sabha. Abdul Nasr Madani, the prime accused in the infamous Coimbatore blasts case of 1998, is the founder of PDP.
BJP’s firebrand leader said that Pinarayi & Co. stopped the murder politics for the time being only because of a man with a spine sitting in Delhi as the Home Minister of the country. The left moved to that extent only because of Amit Shah. They have got the message in this regard.
Sobha Surendran revealed, on April 25, the surprising news of discussion regarding E.P. Jayarajan’s BJP entry. She had revealed it with substantial evidence. EP Jayarajan reportedly admitted that Prakash Javdekkar had visited him at his son’s house. And, he wondered, if he could tell a visitor to go out ! He told the media that Javdekkar visited him at his son’s apartment, but, they had not discussed any sort of political issue. He alleged that Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president K. Sudhakaran blew it out of proportion. He said, it was Sudhakaran who tried to join the BJP some time back. He pointed out that Congressmen are joining BJP throughout the country and in Kerala.
It is to be noted that both Jayarajan and Sudhakare are from a single district, Kannur, CPM’s stronghold in the state. Their enmity, despite being political, has quite often gone to a personal level. Jayarajan was shot at Ongol in 1995 while travelling in a train from Delhi to Kerala. It was alleged that Sudhakaran was behind the ‘attempt to murder’. Still they quite often resort to heated arguments through media.
After Pinarayi Vijayan and the late Kodiyeri Balakrishnan moved to Thiruvananthapuram as party secretaries and chief minister and home minister, respectively, the party leadership in Kannur district was left with P. Jayarajan, E.P. Jayarajan and present district secretary MV Jayarajan. Few years back, the camaraderie between P. Jayarajan and Chief Minister Pinarayi fell apart. E.P. Jayarajan was made a minister in the 1st Pinarayi government (2016 – 2021). But, after a few months, he had to resign in light of the appointment of a close relative in a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU). The appointed nephew was the son of P.K. Sreemati, senior CPM leader and the then Lok Sabha member from Kannur.
After some time, E.P. Jayarajan was rehabilitated as the LDF convener. But, his body language and his behaviour gave the impression that he was not content. His mind set came to light when M.V. Govindan, a party leader from the same district of Kannur, comparatively junior to the three Jayarajans, was selected as the state secretary of CPM after the demise of Kodiyeri Balakrishnan. Then EP Jayararjan reportedly evaded party programmes, including committee meetings. One of those days, Govindan started a political campaign march from Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram to propagate the ‘achievements’ of Pinarayi regime. The march commenced from Kasaragod, the northern tip of the state, and was heading to capital city of Thiruvananthapuram, the southern tip. It was a hot issue in Kerala’s political scenario in 2023 as Jayarajan skipped the March for the first couple of weeks. At last, when the march reached Thrissur after a couple of weeks, Jayarajan joined it. The party had to justify him, citing health reasons. Later on, he started to bat for Pinarayi as a sycophant. The above incidents speak volumes about the desolation E.P. Jayararajan was suffering.
Now, CM Pinarayi Vijayan has come out with a warning for EP Jayarajan. He has said that Jayarajan could have maintained much more caution when he mixed with political opponents. E.P. Jayarajan has not been observing this for long. The CM was speaking to the media after casting his vote on April 26. He said that the attacks and allegations against E.P. Jayarajan were actually targeted at the CPM and LDF. He hoped that people would realise it. He said, Jayararja’s nature is well known. He quoted a proverb: “Lord Siva becomes sinner when a sinner befriends him.”. Pinarayi added, caution is necessary when one befriends another. Some are hell-bent to see how to destroy others. Friendships with such people should be handled with care. At the same time, CM reportedly said that he had met Javdekkar too.
Now, the entire episode has been unearthed by the revelations of a power broker based in Kochi.
During the election campaign, Assam CM Himanth Bishwa Sharma told people in Vandoor, Malappuram district, that political change in Kerala is imminent. He said, some Congress leaders discussed with him the possibility of breaking away from the party and forming a regional party to align with the BJP for the 2026 Assembly elections. Now, it is kept pending; and discussions will resume after the Lok Sabha polls. He said, two – three discussions had taken place in Delhi and they decided to restart after the Lok Sabha elections.
These incidents give a clear indication that both the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and the CPM-led LDF are in deep trouble. Both are on the verge of struggling for existence. Both Congress and CPM are in the blame game. Both attack each other, accusing BJP links. Political Kerala is eagerly waiting to see what is going to happen after the parliamentary elections.
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