CPM group war in open

CPM cadre conspired against Pinarayi, claims Power Min

Group war within the State CPI-M has taken a new turn with Pinarayi loyalist and Power Minister AK Balan, lashing out in print against the Achuthanandan faction over the SNC Lavalin issue .

The Minister, in the first of a series of articles in the party mouthpiece, the Deshabhimani has revealed that the Lavalin issue was in the limelight thanks to some people within the party itself.

Slamming the Achuthanandan faction in his article, Balan wrote that certain comrades against whom action was taken on the basis of their role in leaking party secrets were primarily responsible for spreading rumors against the party secretary.

The CPI-M leadership which is already grappling with the canker of spreading groupism in the party would now be more concerned as a certain party secretariat member, who is also a minister, has used the party mouthpiece for airing differences in public.

The article, which appeared in the Wednesday issue of the Deshabhimani created a flutter among the CPI-M cadres and lower level leadership.

After Achuthanandan’s removal as the Editor- in- Chief of the Deshabhimani this is the first instance in which a senior leader of the party has voiced his opinion against a rival group in the party organ which is clearly aimed at the supporters of the Chief Minister .

The Pinarayi faction leaders when contacted denied having criticised the Chief Minister, but this was far from the truth and several leaders belonging to this faction are is utilising the article for settling personal scores at the local level in the party.

.The comrades who were either suspended or expelled from the party were all from the Achuthanandan faction and even the demoted leader N.N.Krishnadas ,MP is a loyalist of the Chief Minister.

In his article the Minister has alleged that there was a major conspiracy in the State to nail Pinarayi Vijayan and that the former Power Minister Aryadan Mohammed had made some startling revelations in a private chat on the issue. Balan also blasted the Power Ministers in the previous UDF Government, including Karthikeyan and Kadavoor Sivadasan as being responsible for signing the contract with SNC Lavalin.

He has also highlighted the advantages of the Lavelin deal and the expertise that the company had in power projects.

The attack against the UDF ministers is seen as a deft political move by the minister to camouflage his attack against the Chief Minister’s faction and fellow CPI-M travellers are of the opinion that this direct attack by the official faction is a prelude to the party branch committee conferences and the State office bearers elections scheduled in the near future.

A senior leader of the party official faction while speaking to The Pioneer said: “There is nothing wrong in what the Minister has written and to highlight this issue as a part of the faction war in the party is a conspiracy of the media. Those expelled from the party were indeed responsible in spreading the Lavalin issue against Pinarayi Vijayan in an orchestrated manner and we have to respond”.