THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: CPM legislator MM Mani’s unkind remark against KK Rema, MLA, widow of slain RMP leader TP Chandrasekharan, created a ruckus in the assembly on Thursday. During the discussion on demand for grants, Mani said “she became a widow due to her fate” and that “we are not responsible for it”.
Mani refused to budge on the Opposition’s demand for an apology and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan supported Mani. Conveniently ignoring Mani’s “fate” comment, the CM said he did not find any wrong in Mani saying that the CPM or LDF was not responsible for the killing. Mani’s outburst was in fact a reflection of the treasury bench’s anger against Rema for her scathing criticism against the police and its minister Pinarayi in the same discussion. She said the “police system was sterilised by party workers” and that the home department was taking sides with offenders. The police are obsessed with the CM’s security. “The chief minister is speeding across the state after keeping people in captivity. He has become a ‘moving emergency”, she said.
When Mani’s turn came he said a “great woman’ has spoken against the chief minister and LDF government. “That great woman became a widow. It’s her own fate. We are not responsible for it,” he said. He further alleged that police had abused some two lakh people when Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan was the home minister.
Raising a point of order, Thiruvanchoor demanded that Mani should tender an apology. “TP is a martyr and how would anyone speak against him like this. A woman’s husband was hacked to death and to term it fate is nonsense,” he said. The abuse of two lakh people is a blatant lie as the whole of Kerala jails can accommodate fewer than 15,000 persons, he said. Opposition Leader V D Satheesan too rose from his seat. “We will not allow the house to run smoothly after abusing our sister.
There is no compromise,” he said. Amid the opposition protest, Mani continued. “I did not intend to insult anyone. I haven’t even thought about it. I said my feeling. My clear opinion is that the CM cannot be ridiculed by anyone in their speech. A woman who came alone to the house is attacking the CM. Is that right? I would say no.”He blamed the Opposition for not advising Rema against attacking the CM. Joining the debate, senior Congress Leader Ramesh Chennithala called for the speaker’s intervention.
war of words
That great woman became a widow. It’s her own fate. We are not responsible for it - M M Mani
My clear opinion is that the CM cannot be ridiculed by anyone in their speech. A woman who came alone to the house is attacking the CM. Is that right? I would say no – M M Mani
TP is a martyr and how would anyone speak against him like this? A woman’s husband was hacked to death and to term it fate is deplorable - Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan
You pained her by killing her husband with 52 cuts. Aren’t you done with sucking his blood? Or still, you wanna hack? - Ramesh Chennithala
Mani said that we have no role in her becoming a widow. In ‘we’ he meant the CPM and the LDF. There is nothing wrong in that part of the speech. Addressing her as a great woman too is not a disgrace
- Pinarayi Vijayan
You cannot conduct the house after insulting our sister. There is no compromise - V D Satheesan
‘HC HAD NOT SOUGHT AUDITING IN KSRTC’
T’Puram: Transport Minister Antony Raju said in the legislative assembly on Thursday that the High Court had not sought high-level auditing in the KSRTC. He said the schedules had to be cut short as the number of passengers had come down from 30 lakh to 18 lakh. Following Susheel Khanna’s recommendations, there will be only 15 district offices for the KSRTC from Monday, he said. The stalled services in routes which are not loss-making will be resumed step by step. “But bus services will not be started in those routes which are loss-making”, he said.
PINARAYI CONTRADICTS HIS OWN STATEMENT IN ASSEMBLY
T’Puram: In supporting M M Mani, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has contradicted his own statement in the assembly on June 11, 2018. In reply to N Shamsudheen’s question, the chief minister said twelve accused who were CPM sympathisers were convicted in the TP Chandrasekharan murder case. He had also listed their names in the reply to an unstarred question.