Kochi: The CPM leadership in the state, riding a sympathy wave in the wake of the killing of 20-year-old Abhimanyu of Maharaja’s College, has suffered a jolt with N.P. Jessy, wife of John Fernandez MLA, in a Facebook post hinting at possible links between party cadres and SDPI activists in West Kochi. The SDPI and its student outfit Campus Front activists are the main accused in the murder of SFI leader Abhimanyu. The post, withdrawn hurriedly, has been denounced by Mr. Fernandez, Jessy’s husband and nominated member of the Assembly representing Anglo-Indian community.
“The matter mentioned in the Facebook post of my wife N.P. Jessy dated July 10, 2018 are baseless and should be dismissed with contempt,” he said in a statement on Thursday. The Facebook post comprised information passed by a staff-member of education department during a telephone conversation with Jessy. The MLA has stated that SDPI, the extremist religious outfit, was trying every trick to divert the attention from the killing of Abhimanyu following the rising tide of public anger against the killing. The propaganda of CPM workers helping SDPI was part of such a diversionary tactics, he added.
Jessy, meanwhile, issued a new post stating that she had never mentioned that the CPM was having links with the SDPI gang. “I have made the post against the encroachment of the ground of the Fort Kochi Amaravati UP school by Hindu extremists. It was a complaint raised by an official friend of mine. If there is any truth in his complaint, the mistakes should be rectified. I have never stated that the CPM is having links with the gang involved in the dastardly killing of Abhimanyu. He has said that the party should trace those involved in protecting the killers. CPM is strong in Kochi and the strength should be used to trace the killer gang. If the SDPI has infiltrated into the mainstream, it is for the parties concerned to weed them out. My FB post should not be used by SDPI for propaganda and I am withdrawing the same,” she said.
Ernakulam DCC president T.J. Vinod said the CPM has the responsibility to clear the doubts raised by a former state committee member of DYFI whether CPM is involved in protecting the killers of Abhimanyu. The withdrawal of the Facebook within hours is indication of the CPM denying the right of freedom of expression to persons linked with the party. “Severing all open and clandestine tie-ups with SDPI will be the minimum that the CPM could do for the memory of Abhimanyu,” he said. He also urged SFI activists to end the practice of carrying weapons into the campus to end violence once and for all on campuses across the state.
