Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday appeared to rely on Kerala Congress (M) [KC(M)] leader K.M. Mani’s autobiography published posthumously to obliquely portray the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) alliance as one riven by backbiting and power-centric coteries revolving around the personal ambition of individual leaders.
At a function seemingly pregnant with political implications, Mr. Vijayan released the book by gifting the first copy to Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leader P.K. Kunhalikutty.
Cong. leaders absent
Congress leaders were pointedly not invited to the event despite Mani being one of UDF’s founding members and its soft-spoken champion and public face for over 50 years.
Mr. Vijayan said Mani had revealed in the autobiography that some Congress leaders had hounded him bitterly. “Mani’s memoirs are also a treatise on how political alliances should not work. They stress the importance of civility and honesty in coalition politics,” Mr. Vijayan said.
Bar bribery case
Excerpts of the memoirs that appeared in the public domain seemed to suggest that the bar bribery case that cost Mani his Cabinet seat in the Oommen Chandy government was the outcome of his reluctance to kowtow to the consuming desire of a Congress leader and a colleague in the council of Ministers to supplant Chandy as Chief Minister by hook or crook.
The autobiography also reportedly notes that a top Congress leader’s close relative aired the questionable bar bribery accusation that caused the UDF government to slap an anti-corruption case on Mani. Mr. Vijayan pointedly stayed clear of mentioning the name of the Congress leader alluded to by Mani in the latter’s autography.
He also refused to dwell on the bitter blame game that purportedly caused Mani’s son and political heir, Jose K. Mani, to forsake the UDF for Left Democratic Front in 2020.
Toiling class theory
Mr. Vijayan also lauded Mani’s toiling class theory that farmers and agricultural labourers were the actual working class in the State and that their paramount welfare should be the State’s prime concern. “The Left has disagreements about Mani’s political doctrine. Nevertheless, it is relevant to Kerala and hewed to the Left’s proletarian line in some measure,” Mr. Vijayan said. He also reminisced about Mani’s legislative contributions and legal prowess.
Mr. Vijayan recalled Mani’s tumultuous times, including the Liberation Struggle against the first Communist government, the private college management strike, and the Emergency.
Mr. Vijayan termed Mani a vocal champion of federalism and said that, if alive, the KC(M) founder would have been at the forefront of the State’s struggle to get its due from the Centre.
