THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The last bastion of the KE Ismail faction in CPI is under pressure with the state leadership initiating an inquiry into allegations of corruption against its Pathanamthitta district secretary AP Jayan.
Except Pathanamthitta, the faction led by state secretary Kanam Rajendran has managed to capture power in all other districts by electing or by switching the allegiance of the top leaders and party functionaries.Other than Pathanmathitta, Idukki is the only other district where there is some resistance to the Kanam faction.
Jayan was elected as district secretary for a third term despite efforts by the official-led by Kanam-faction to replace him. He is known as strong confidant of Ismail and has so far remained defiant to the overtures of the official faction.
The last state executive of CPI appointed K K Ashraf to verify the facts in a complaint raised against Jayan by Pathanamthitta district panchayat member Sreenadevi Kunjamma. In her complaint,she has alleged that Jayan has amassed disproportionate wealth and has started a farm worth Rs 6 crore.Incidentally,Ashraf belonged to the Ismail faction until the recently held Ernakulam district conference where he switched his allegiance at the last moment to the official faction.
Sreenadevi, who’s also the state committee member of the youth wing of the party AIYF,had raised the allegation earlier in several party forums.She claims that she was denied representation at the ‘mandalam’ conference because of her fight against the district secretary’s wrong doings.She approached the state leadership after the district conference and her complaint was kept in abeyance until now. In support of Jayan, his supporters allege that the leadership is settling the score for the strong criticism at the district conference against state secretary.
At the district conference, some delegates had termed Kanam a slave of Pinarayi Vijayan and the district secretary (Jayan) did not intervene when some delegates indulged in personal attack against the state secretary. It is learnt that following the inquiry into the allegations against Jayan,the party members in the Ismail faction who were passive for some time have started to regroup in an effort to defend its last power centre.
Presently, the Ismail faction is watching the state leadership’s move with apprehension.CPI is likely to form a commission for further inquiry if the report by Ashraf validates the allegation. At the last state conference in Thiruvananthapuram, the official faction led by state secretary Kanam was unstoppable and it completely decimated the Ismail faction. With Ismail and C Divakaran having to step-down from the executive and state council due to age limit the rebel faction has limited representation in the top decision making bodies.