Piravom at the heart of CPM-Jose K Mani ‘payment seat’ debacle within LDF in Kerala

After Ponani, Manjeshwaram, Kuttiadi and other locations, the CPI (M) seems to be on a roll with their party members turning against the state leadership. The latest in line is Piravom, where the CPM is being alleged of participating in a sale of a seat with the Kerala Congress (M). The allegation has been levelled by Youth Front (M) state vice president Jills Periapuram, who, according to sources, had been expecting the seat.

While the Piravom seat had been reserved for KC (M), they chose CPM’s Sindhumol Jacob as their candidate for Piravom, which Jills described as “payment seat”. Jills had unofficially started his election campaigning at Piravom when the KC (M) decided to field Sindhumol who had been considered for the CPM seat in Kaduthuruthy.

Sindhumol is currently the Uzhavoor block panchayat member. Following the issue, CPM removed her for going against the party, but Sindhu had claimed that her candidature was fixed after discussion between the party leadership and Jose K Mani. Jills also alleged that her removal from CPM is nothing but a drama to trick the people. “If the party removed an Uzhavoor member, why should the LDF bear her in Piravom? Moreover, there were other better candidates in CPM instead of Sindhumol, who could do better,” says Jills.

He added that he had been a Youth Front member for almost 25 years, but he was rejected candidature because he wasn’t “Jacobite”. According to reports, Piravom is dominated by Jacobite votes and a candidate from the same faction was a natural choice. According to sources, the CPM also believed that Sindhumol is the ideal candidate here but the party has admitted to none of the allegations.

Interestingly, today morning, Sindhu had told the media that she would contest the election under the two-leaf symbol. She added that she had been a CPM-supported independent candidate, but sources claimed that if she needed to contest under the KC (M) symbol, then she would need to quit CPM. Moreover, she added that she is still contesting as an LDF candidate regardless of party, and so any allegation of “payment seat” doesn’t make sense.