Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 4 Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Sobha Surendran launched a sharp attack on veteran Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader E.P. Jayarajan on Tuesday, mocking his recently released autobiography and alleging that it should have been titled "A Thief's Memoir".
It was on Monday that Jayarajan's autobiography "Ithanente Jeevitham (This Is My Life)" was released by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in Kannur.
Surendran repeated her earlier statement that she had visited Jayarajan at Ramanilayam (government guest house in Thrissur).
"I went there three times and one of those visits was to meet E.P. Jayarajan. If I had stayed for 24 hours more, the BJP shawl would have been around his neck," she said, taking a jibe at the Left leader.
The BJP leader also vowed to pursue the defamation case filed by Jayarajan to its conclusion, saying she would make him "draw the letter Ksha in court," a Malayalam idiom implying public apology.
Surendran's remarks came a day after Jayarajan, in his autobiography, accused her of attempting to secure a BJP ticket for her son.
In the book, Jayarajan claims that Surendran met his son in Ernakulam, took his phone number, and repeatedly contacted him to discuss political matters.
Responding to the allegation, Surendran said, "Does E.P. Jayarajan have a machine to read my mind to conclude that the calls were about fielding my son in the election?"
She reiterated that her visit to Ramanilayam was not unusual and ridiculed the veteran CPI-M leader Jayarajan for what she termed "fabricated political storytelling".
"If his book has any truthful name, it should be 'The Autobiography of a Thief'," Surendran said, drawing laughter from BJP workers.
Meanwhile, tension is brewing within the CPI-M following the publication of Jayarajan's autobiography.
CPI-M circles are reportedly displeased that Jayarajan has revealed several internal disputes and controversies that the organisation had kept under wraps.
Sources said the discontent stems largely from the fact that Jayarajan has openly written about the criticisms raised against him by former legislator P. Jayarajan within the party organisation.
Moreover, the absence of key CPI-M leaders, including State Secretary M.V. Govindan, from the book release function held on Monday has further fuelled speculation about internal friction.
P. Jayarajan, too, did not attend the event.
Generally, the CPI-M leaders refrains from discussing internal discussions or disagreements in public.
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor