CPM ex-MP says party's words, deeds differ; quits

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It is not an exodus as yet, but the CPM in Kerala is facing desertion from its top ranks, with another ex-MP deciding to quit, alleging that the words and deeds of the party's leadership do not match.

"It is different from what I have heard and learned. I have not been able to come to terms with some of the recent policies adopted by the party", former CPM MP S. Sivaraman who represented the Ottapalam constituency from 1993 said by way of explanation for his decision to leave the party.

Sivaraman said he was disappointed by the manner in which the leadership of the party said one thing and practiced something else, and that the corrective steps being discussed within the party did not appear to be coming into practice.

Sivaraman had been a star for the CPM in the early 1990s when he wrested the Ottapalam constituency that had fallen vacant following the then Congress MP KR Narayanan going on to become the vice president. Sivaraman had won the seat with a majority in excess of one lakh votes.

While Narayanan went on to be president of the country, Sivaraman did not find the going good within the CPM, being largely sidelined after his stint as MP from 1993 to 1996.

Sivaraman's exit from the CPM follows those of former MP from Kannur, AP Abdullakutty who quit the left camp to join the Congress, and another ex-MP KS Manoj, who quit the party on ideological grounds a month ago.

Abdullakutty's differences with the party aggravated after he made a remark indirectly appreciating the pro-industry approach of Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, and KS Manoj, a former MP from Alappuzha, left the party after he had serious differences of opinion with the party on the issue of attending religious functions. Manoj had won the 2004 Lok Sabha poll defeating Congress strongman VM Sudheeran, but was beaten in 2009 by Congress leader KC Venugopal.