Kodiyeri Balakrishnan’s soft corner to the NDF

CPM needs to make decisive moves

Source:www.expressbuzz.com

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The words of CPM state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan describing the NDF as a recruiting agent of international terrorist outfits resonated in the media-sphere a couple of days ago. He repeated the rhetoric on Sunday as well.

 

The fact that Pinarayi Vijayan has been a known opponent of the NDF since 2002 doesn’t wipe out the impression in the minds of the general public that the CPM had indirectly supported and facilitated the growth of Muslim fundamentalist organisations in the state.

The failure of the state Home Department to initiate any strict action against the terrorists during the last two years and five months of the LDF rule is sure to haunt the CPM in the coming months, especially when the party will campaign for the Lok Sabha seats early next year.

The UDF is sure to make this a campaign issue to fight the CPM propaganda against Indo-US nuclear deal.

The CPM had bluntly accepted the votes of the NDF, the Jama’at-e-Islami, the PDP and all other Muslim organisations which oppose the Muslim League during the last Assembly election. The posters of Abdul Nazar Madani, who was in Coimbatore jail then, was lavishly used by the CPM to canvass votes.

Subsequently, the government was forced to extend illegal bail-outs to many of the hard-core organisations when they had performed anti-national activities.

The incidents at Panayikulam and Wagamon stand testimony to LDF government’s soft corner towards Muslim hardliners.

Though the CPM openly attacks the NDF and all other Muslim fundamentalist organisations, the major criticism against the party levelled by neutral voters and political observers is that the party hadn’t shown the guts to openly tell that it didn’t need the votes of such organisations.

In fact, the CPM could reiterate several times that it didn’t need the votes of the BJP and RSS. But, the party conveniently forgot to say that it didn’t want the votes of the NDF or other fundamentalist outfits. During the Assembly polls, the alliance between the NDF and the CPM was visible in many constituencies including Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan’s own Thalassery. The NDF leaders openly campaigned for Kodiyeri in Thalassery. In Eravipuram in Kollam district, the CPM and Muslim fundamentalists joined hands to defeat Muslim Youth League leader K.M. Shaji, who is a known opponent of the NDF.

Sources in the CPM said that there was widespread resentment among party leaders against Kodiyeri Balakrishnan’s soft corner to the NDF.

When Pinarayi Vijayan, who now sees a potential rival in Kodiyeri, takes up cudgels against the NDF, there is a larger political agenda behind that.

When Pinarayi pinpoints the state police and asks the force to act fast, the agenda becomes clearer. The point is whether Kodiyeri can take a cue from that and act like a real Home Minister.

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