Pinarayi annoyed; avoids media

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With the Polit Bureau of the party deciding to field V S Achuthanandan as a candidate in the Assembly election scheduled for May 2006, the CPM Kerala Secretary Pinarayi Vijayan, notorious for his arrogance, bunked the press meet addressed by Prakash Karat. It is customary for the party’s state secretary to be present when the all India secretary addresses the media after a sensational state secretariat meet. Vijayan was conspicuous by his absence during Friday’s press meet addressed by Karat. “The Kerala secretary was visibly upset over the decision of the Polit Buro and was in one of his very bad moods in the evening,” a source in the CPM told Haindava Keralam over telephone from AKG Centre.

A poker-faced Kodiyeri Balakrishnan gave company to Prakash Karat during the media briefing. Kodiyeri is a staunch Pinarayi supporter.

“Comrade Pinarayi Vijayan has difficulties in meeting the media since he felt humiliated by the Polit Bureau decision to bring in VS. It was Pinarayi himself who told the media last week that it was curtain for VS,” said the source on condition of anonymity. It may be remembered that Pinarayi had told media persons last week that there was no question of reconsidering the candidature of VS. He even went to the extent of threatening some reporters who ‘dared’ to ask him ‘uncomfortable’ questions.
The source also told HK that Pinarayi shouted at almost all the members of the state committee who spoke in praise of VS. Though reporters waited outside the AKG Centre to get a glimpse of the cruel faced Pinarayi, he made a safe exit through one of the side doors exclusively reserved for the escapades of the party secretary.