CPM leader's family accuses party for double murder

Attempts of the CPM in Kerala to wash its hands of the responsibility of the brutal killing of two Youth Congress workers suffered a setback as the wife and daughter of the CPM local leader held for the murders have come out in the open alleging CPM’s role in the killing.

While the Congress has already demanded a CBI probe to unravel the conspiracies behind the double murder in the wake of the fresh revelation, the CPM Kerala State Secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan termed it just as an emotional outburst of the family and reiterated that the CPM is not behind the double murder.

A Peethambaran, a local committee member of CPM at Periya in Kasargod district was arrested in connection with the murder of two Youth Congress workers, Kripesh and Sarathlal, on Sunday night. Though the initial indications by the police was that he was a conspirator, he was later made the key accused. The weapons used for the killing was also recovered by the police with Peethambaran’s help. Though six more CPM workers were in police custody since Tuesday, no more arrests were recorded till Wednesday evening.

As the probe was zeroing-in on Peethambaran, his family came out with the revelation that Peethambaran was a hardcore CPM follower and he would have acted on party leader’s direction. “The CPM is now disowning him as the elections are in the offing. The party is fully responsible for this incident. But now they are putting the blame on Peethambaran to shield the party, said his wife Manju and daughter Devi.

Meanwhile, the remand report of Peethambaran submitted by the police at a local court in Kasargod also said that the murder was owing to political vengeance.

The Congress-led United Democratic Front in Kerala staged a demonstration at Kasargod district on Wednesday demanding that the probe should be handed over to the CBI. Since the CPM is in power in Kerala, a fair probe by the Kerala police against the CPM could not be expected. Hence, the probe should be handed over to CBI, Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala demanded.