CPM in a spot over Modi-praise by party MP

CPI(M)’s Kannur district secretary P Sasi
has already announced that action against Abdullakkutty, who has in the
past one year put the party in difficult situation with his highly
sensational but controversial statements, for extolling Modi, whom the
communists see as personification of “right wing Hindu fascism”. But at
the same time, the fact remains that it is not easy for the party to
take any stringent action like expulsion against the young MP.

What
is worrying the CPI(M) is that Abdullakkutty is waiting for it to take
any serious action against him to leave the party in search of greener
pastures, in his case, the Muslim League. Losing Abdullakkutty is not a
big issue for the CPI(M) but his joining the Muslim League would be
severe blow to it in a place like Kannur, known as the heartland of the
communist party in Kerala.

Abdullakkutty had on December 28 said
in Dubai at a meet the Press programme that Kerala should make Modi a
model in attracting investors to the State. He cited Modi’s successful
efforts to rope in the Tatas to Gujarat when they wanted to shift the
Nano car project out of West Bengal, ruled by the CPI(M)-led front as
the perfect example for his ability to attract investors.

Modi
made the situation more difficult for the CPI(M) by commenting in
Ahmedabad the other day that he was pleased to see even Marxist leaders
were approving the development example of Gujarat. If all the former
controversial postures by Abdullakkutty could be confined to the State,
this particular issue caused problems for the national leadership of
the CPI(M), which was hoping to bank on the votes of the Modi-hating
minorities in the coming Lok Sabha polls.

What was even more
damaging to the Kerala CPI(M) was Abdullakkutty’s refusal to disown his
statement on his return to Kerala from a Gulf tour on Saturday.
Confronted by mediamen, he said he was talking about the
investor-friendliness of Narendra Modi. The whole brunt of
Abdullakkutty’s tirades are being borne by the Kannur district
committee of the CPI(M) with the leadership facing questions from
middle rung leaders and the cadres why the party is not taking action
against the MP even after repeated acts of indiscipline.CPI(M) leaders
in Kannur admit that action against Abdullakkutty has to be taken after
careful thoughts as he is waiting for an opportunity to leave the party
an as the Muslim League is waiting for an opportunity to welcome him.
With his stature as a traditional Muslim feudalist, Abdullakkutty can
still command influence among the Muslim Community with the support of
the League, the party leaders fear.

However, the party cannot
avoid some action against Abdullakkutty because the MP was praising
Modi, whom the party is projecting as the personification of Hindu
“extremism” and efforts at “extermination” of Muslims in India for
making inroads into the Muslim votes in the State. Avoiding action
against him even after praising Modi would have serious consequences
for the party in the Muslim-dominated areas in Kerala.

The young
MP has already been an enfante terrible for the official leadership of
the CPI(M) due to his open declarations of faith in religion and God
and several other matters. He had first attracted the ire of his party
leaders by publicly speaking against hartals.

He had sparked off
debates in the CPI(M) by performing Umrah at Mecca and then openly
admitting his faith through the media. He also sprang a surprise by
appearing for Namaz at an Idgah in Kannur on the last Id-ul Fitr day
and repeated the same for the recent Id-ul Azaha.

He had once
shocked the party by saying that he, being a communist, had not
performed “Mayyath Namaskaram” (paying tribute to the dead near the
mortal remains) when his mother died but was disappointed to see the
leaders who taught him this performing it when their relatives had
died.