CPM made Om Prakash a goonda: Father

Even before 24 hours were out since CPI(M) secretary Pinarayi Vijayan claimed that infamous goonda Om Prakash, 15th accused in the Paul murder case, was being protected by the Congress, the goonda’s father revealed that his family was traditionally Marxist and that Om Prakash was an activist of the CPI(M) and local leader of its youth outfit, DYFI.

“He has no connections with any Congress leaders. How can a Marxist be a companion of Congress leaders? (Om) Prakash has no connections with (Congress leaders) K Sudhakaran or Sobhana George,” Prasannakumaran, father of Om Prakash, told the media at his home in a Thiruvananthapuram suburb on Saturday.

At a Press conference in Thiruvananthauram on Friday evening, Pinarayi Vijayan had said that Om Prakash was a regular visitor at the room of a former Congress MLA, who was an MP now, at the MLA hostel in the capital. Though he did not explicitly say who this Congress leader was but he gave enough indications that this was K Sudhakaran.

Prasannakumaran revealed that Om Prakash was the unit secretary of DYFI in Malayankeezhu in Thiruvananthapruam and that the CPI(M) bosses had made him accept the responsibility of the crimes others in the party had committed. He said that his son was a victim of the divisionism in the CPI(M).

“Is my son a goonda or was he made into a goonda (by the Marxist leaders)? I think he was a victim of the groupism in the party. Otherwise, how would some people in the party trap another party worker in criminal cases?” Prasannakumaran asked.

He admitted that his son did have business connections with Paul George Muthoot, who was murdered on the night of August 21. He had come across Paul through a friend of his, working as an engineer at an IT park in Pune. This had led them to doing real estate business together. My son and Paul used to meet frequently as they were doing business, Prasannakumaran said.

He charged the CPI(M) leadership with throwing out his son after his purpose was served. “My son had entered politics by working as DYFI member and secretary of the Malayankeezhu unit. He had connections with leaders including the area secretary. But they threw him out after his purpose was served and when they thought his image was detrimental to their popularity,” he said.

Prasannakumaran said that his was a traditionally Marxist family. “We have no other party but CPI(M). I don’t have any particular respect for any particular leader, be it EMS, VS Achuthanandan or Pinarayi Vijayan. We are staunch Marxists,” he said, adding that all the dreams he had had about Om Prakash had been shattered by the party bosses who trapped him in criminal cases.

Stating that the family would not get justice if the Kerala Police, controlled by the CPI(M), probed the Paul murder case, Prasannakumaran said only a CBI probe could bring out the truth behind the killing.

Meanwhile, DYFI national president P Sreeramakrishnan said Om Prakash was once a DYFI worker but he was expelled from the organization after it was found that his activities were not acceptable.

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