Congress has 'surrendered' to IUML, alleges CPI(M)

Launching a house-to-house campaignin the poll bound Kerala, state's ruling CPI(M) on Sundayattacked the Congress, alleging that the opposition party has''surrendered'' to the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), a keypartner in the UDF.

''The opposition (in Kerala) represents religious hatred.

The Congress has surrendered to the Muslim League. Thatis being brought to the public,'' State Secretary of CPI(M) AVijayaraghavan told reporters in Thrissur after participatingin the campaign to ''discuss'' with people the programmeslaunched by the LDF government in the state during its lastfive year rule.

The CPI(M) has said during its ongoing house-to-housecampaign ending January 31, the party workers would expose thepolitical opportunism of the Congress, which has tried to makefriends with outfits like Jamaat-e- Islami to target the LDFgovernment in the state.

''The opposition has never worked for protecting theinterest of the common people.

The Congress, using its partner like Muslim League, triedto bring the outfits like Jama-at-e-Islami into its fold. Theparty will expose such political opportunism of the Congress,''Vijayaraghavan had said in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday.

Hitting back at the CPI(M), the Congress said the leftparty leader, by making such statements, was trying to'emulate' the politics of BJP, which is based on ''communalcampaign'' in the state.

''The BJP is carrying out anti-Muslim campaign. Now, theLDF is also engaged in a similar campaign. Both the CPI(M) andthe BJP are having only one agenda in this election.

That is a communal agenda,'' KPCC vice president V DSatheesan MLA said when his reaction was sought by the media.

Dismissing the allegations, UDF convenor M M Hassan saidthe Congress is leading the UDF and has not 'surrendered' toany of its partners.

The CPI(M) changed its political narrative in the stateduring the local body polls held last month attacking theCongress over growing clout of the Muslim League in the UDF.

Raising this issue, the party had won traditional votesof the Congress belonging to Christian and upper caste Hinducommunities, capturing the strongholds of the UDF in centraland southern Kerala districts in the civic polls.

The CPI(M) brought such a shift in its political lineafter the Congress-led UDF, influenced by the Muslim League,forged electoral understanding with the Welfare Party, apolitical outfit of Jamaat-e-Islami, to defeat the LDF in theMalabar area.

After the UDF suffered a huge blow in the civic polls,Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had alleged that Muslim Leaguewas making decisions for the front.