Veekshanam editorial ‘defending’ Mamkootathil catches Congress unawares

Congress enactment successful Kerala appeared blindsided connected Saturday by its enactment mouthpiece Veekshanam.  In a contentious editorial, the paper sought to situation the expected hypocrisy of those seeking to condemn Palakkad MLA Rahul Mamkootathil, who was suspended from the enactment successful August pursuing accusations of serial intersexual misconduct and is presently facing charges of rape and coerced termination of pregnancy.

Notably, the editorial borrowed the biblical communicative of Jesus absolving the sins of a pistillate condemned to decease by stoning for adultery, purportedly to supply a motivation defence for Mr. Mamkootathil. The editorial quoted from the gospel, stating that “let those who person not sinned propulsion stones”. 

The paper besides portrayed Mr. Mamkootathil arsenic the latest unfortunate of the CPI(M)’s “election agenda-setting muckraking” aimed astatine blighting a “burning sun” and a prima campaigner of the Congress.

The Congress enactment appeared caught unawares. The enactment had been astatine pains precocious to item that it had offered nary governmental extortion to Mr. Mamkootathil nor sought his services astatine the section assemblage canvass hustings.

CPI(M) reaction

CPI(M) State caput M.V. Govindan appeared to prehend the inaugural and termed the editorial a “brazen defence of intersexual predators, which testified to the motivation degeneracy afflicting the Congress”.

Mr. Govindan claimed that Mr. Mamkootathil’s peccadillos had further divided the Congress and rendered it rudderless. He said Congress’s societal media handles loyal to Mr. Mamkootathil had viciously targeted Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan and elder person Ramesh Chennithala for demanding exemplary enactment against the MLA. At the aforesaid time, different leaders, including erstwhile KPCC president K. Sudhakaran, defended Mr Mamkootathil. Mr. Sudhakaran has since denied the insinuation. 

The contentious editorial seemed to impel the Congress into firefighting mode. KPCC president Sunny Joseph, MLA, stated that the editorial contravened the party’s authoritative enactment connected the controversy. “The enactment enactment had unanimously suspended Mr. Mamkootathil from superior rank aft the accusations emerged successful the nationalist domain. Veekshanam has nary concern justifying oregon defending a idiosyncratic extracurricular the Congress’s organisational ambit,” helium added. 

Veekshanam managing manager Jaison Joseph said the “tactless editorial” was the effect of a pronounced deficiency of journalistic caution.

A pistillate acquaintance of Mr. Mamkootathil had submitted a ailment to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan connected Thursday, jump-starting the serial intersexual misconduct probe against the MLA, which had lain dormant since August, arguably owed to the deficiency of an identifiable”victim” with a recordable grievance.