M.M. Mani creates row again

Communist Party of India (Marxist) former Idukki district secretary M.M. Mani has put the party in the defensive once again with his alleged remarks at a party regional convention meeting at Tenth Mile near Adimaly on Friday that it was the “partymen who had killed Balu at Vandiperiyar as a retaliation to the killing of Ayyappadas.’’

(Indian National Trade Union Congress leader Balu was hacked to death in 2004 while speaking at a public meeting at Pattumala estate near Vandiperiyar and the Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed by the State government to inquire in to the political murders since 1980’s have already collected evidences on the killing of Mr Balu too. Mr Balu was an accused in the killing of CPI (M) ) Peerumade local committee secretary Ayyappadas).

The remarks of Mr Mani was prominently aired by visual media on Saturday with a mobile phone recording of it in which he, however, denied any role for himself in the killing of Anchery Baby or Muttukad Nanappan.

The latest reference made by Mr Mani is to create embarrassment to the party as he has been arraigned by the SIT as an accused in the killing of Anchery Baby. Mr Mani, who was the jatha captain leading the party regional campaign rally at Tenth Mile, also said that the Anchery Baby and Muttukad Nanappan cases were inquired by the court and the partymen had no role in their murders. He said that he has been made an accused now without any ground.

The SIT had collected evidences from the relatives, witnesses and accused in the murder of Congress members Mr Baby, Mr Nanappan and Mullanchira Mathai, after Mr Mani in a similar meeting at Manakkad near Thodupuzha on May 25 said that the party had a hit list to eliminate its opponents and three of them had been killed. In addition to the cases referred by Mr Mani, in which all the accused were acquitted by the court for want of evidences the SIT , also collected evidences on the murder of Mr Balu.

In an apparent criticism of the Communist Party of India (CPI), an alliance party in the Left Democratic Front, Mr Mani termed it’s actions as that of the mythological character Chandu who deceived Aromal, and killed him. Since his controversial speech at Manakkad, Mr Mani had severely criticized CPI at various forum creating embarrassment to the party leadership in the district.

Mr Mani, however denied of making such a remarks at Tenth Mile and feigned ignorance that he said that the partymen were involved in the killing of Mr Balu. It was all media creation, he said adding that a press brief will be held at Munnar on Sunday to explain the facts.