Chennithala slams Mani Shankar Aiyar, says ‘hired voices’ have no place in Congress

Kochi: Taking a dig at former Union minister Mani Shankar Aiyar, senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala on Friday said that “hired voices” like him have no place in the party.

Responding to Aiyar’s attack on party leaders and his claim that CPI(M) leader Pinarayi Vijayan will continue as Kerala Chief Minister, Chennithala said the former minister is "politically irrelevant and holds no role or position in the Congress." "Mani Shankar Aiyar and others like him are people whose time is over. They have no role in this party. They are not part of this party," he said.

"His position is that of someone who goes wherever he is hired. Whoever hires him, he goes there. That is nothing to be particularly respected," Chennithala added.

When asked whether Aiyar should be expelled, the Congress Working Committee member retorted that Aiyar "is not even in the party, so from where would he be expelled?" "He has no position at all. People like him go around on hire; whoever calls them, they go and speak in that person’s favour," Chennithala added.

Earlier this week, Aiyar visited Kerala at the invitation of the Left government and launched a verbal attack on his party colleagues, remarking that the Pinarayi Vijayan–led LDF would retain power in the state.

In a series of scathing remarks, he branded Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor an "unprincipled careerist", labelled AICC general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal a "rowdy", and took a swipe at party veteran Chennithala.