Difference of opinion seems to have worsened in the Kerala BJP over inviting the influential regional party, Kerala Congress (M) of tainted former Minister KM Mani against whom the party had held a ferocious campaign not very long ago, into the NDA in the context of the by-election to be held soon in the Chengannur Assembly constituency.
While State BJP president Kummanam Rajasekharan wants to forge an alliance with or at least ensure the support of the party of Mani, accused of taking bribe from bar owners when he was Finance Minister over four years back, a section in the party led by former State chief V Muraleedharan, one of its most popular BJP leaders in the State, is opposing the idea.
The difference of opinion over the Kerala Congress (M) issue came out in the open on Sunday with Kummanam saying any party that accepted the NDA’s policies was welcome to the alliance and Muraleedharan effectively rejecting the idea. Former State BJP chief PK Krishnadas had met Mani at his residence the other day allegedly to seek his support in the Chengannur by-poll.
The issue of whether to rope in Mani’s party into the NDA has become extremely significant as far as the BJP is concerned as it needs additional support in the Assembly by-election mainly due to the problems in the relationship with its biggest ally Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS), a party of outfits of Hindu communities, particularly the backward Ezhavas.
The State BJP leadership thinks that it has a fair chance of winning the by-election if it can get some outside support as its candidate PS Sreedharan Pillai had polled 42, 682 cotes when the CPI(M) had won the seat polling 52,880 votes. Pillai, former State BJP chief, himself is the BJP nominee for the by-poll.
“In this context, it is necessary to ensure the continuance of the alliance with the BDJS and to find some new ally or supporter from outside. Since 20 percent of voters in Chengannur are Christians, the support of KC(M), a Church-backed party, will be valuable. But at the same time, the bar bribery charge against him is a big problem,” said a senior BJP leader.
“Nobody should have any problem in coming to the NDA. Anybody accepting the NDA’s policies and programmes is welcome to it. It is for the other parties (those who are willing to come) to make the stand clear,” Kummanam told newsmen in response to a query over whether the BJP would invite Mani’s party into the alliance.
However, Muraleedharan made it clear that there was a difference between taking votes from other parties and having truck with them. In an obvious ridicule against Mani, he said, “There is nothing wrong in accepting votes from even robbers and murderers in an election… But it is up to the State party president to say whether Mani is corrupt or not.”
Mani had resigned as Finance and law minister in the former Congress-led UDF Government in November, 2015 following an adverse observation by the High Court in the case pertaining to the charge that he had taken Rs 1 crore as bribe from bar owners for renewing their licences. Mani’s KC(M), which has six members in the Assembly, left the UDF in August, 2016.
The BJP, like the left, had carried out a ferocious campaign against Mani over the bar bribery scandal and Muraleedharan was among the political leaders who had filed petitions against him. The State Vigilance had recently filed a report exonerating Mani in the case saying that there were no evidences to establish that he had taken bribe.