CPI(M) MLA C. Govindasamy, representing Tirupur constituency, was expelled from the primary membership of the party for defying the decision of the party’s district committee against organising felicitation for DMK ministers.
Besides Mr Govindasamy, district committee member M. Nagaraj, Tirupur North Town committee member Fakhrudin, South committee members S. Velukannan, R. Balakrishnan and a few others were also expelled from the party, said Tirupur district committee secretary K. Kamaraj said in a statement.
The party’s State secretary G. Ramakrishnan, who attended the district committee meeting in which the decision on expulsion was taken, said, “We were under compulsion to expel him as he refused to change his attitude even after he was given a long rope.”
“He is planning to leave the party because he has realised that he could not get another chance to contest the elections,” Mr Ramakrishnan told The Hindu .
Mr Kamaraj said the party was left with no option but to explain the truth behind his expulsion because Mr Govindasamy had been levelling baseless allegations against the party.
Mr Govindasamy was removed from the leader of the CPI(M) in the Assembly and from the State committee in the wake of allegations that in 2008 he acted as a conduit between the owner of the Tirupur textile units and Labour Minister against the interest of the workers.
“When the textile units faced action from the Labour department for violating labour laws with regard to overtime, the owners of the unit collected Rs 25 lakh and the amount was given to the minister through Mr Govindasamy,” Mr Kamaraj said, explaining the reason behind action taken against him in the past.
Mr Kamaraj said though he abided by the decision of the party at that time, now he had been running a campaign saying that “the party was acting against him with ulterior motives.”
“We should have taken stringent action against him when the scandal was exposed in 2008 itself. But the party allowed him to continue, taking into consideration his contribution to the party in the past,” Mr Kamaraj said.
He said though the party had urged him not to organise felicitations for the ministers, he mobilised his supporters and organised a meeting against the party.
“Instead of giving credit to the party for the efforts taken to get developments to Tirupur, he has projected himself. Driven by selfishness and pursuit of money, he has deliberately undermined the discipline of the party. If he has the basic integrity he should resign his MLA post,” Mr Kamaraj said.
