Kerala Government Sees Only ‘Red’: Suspends Employee For ‘Liking’ Post Against CPM Leader P Jayarajan

A state government employee of Kerala has been suspended for ‘liking’ a Facebook post against senior CPM leader and party’s contestant for Vadakara Lok Sabha constituency P Jayarajan, reports Janmabhumi.

Kerala Public Works Department employee of the Kuttipuram section, KP Manoj Kumar, was suspended for allegedly violating Section 69 of the model code of conduct which restricts public servants from indulging in political activities.

He is reportedly under investigation. According to the report, Manoj Kumar ‘liked’ a post of a news channel appeared in the news feed of Facebook. Later on, there was reportedly a widespread campaign against him saying that a government employee is spreading fake news against P Jayarajan.

Jayarajan is an accused in the Kathiroor Manoj case and Ariyil Shokoor murder case and is considered the strongest leader of the party in the northern district of Kannur. Reports suggests that Jayarajan was a close aide of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, but the former’s supremacy in the district committee and autocratic way of functioning has strained the friendship.

However, Manoj Kumar has said that he was unaware of such an incident. He said that he had only clicked the link to open it. He reportedly denied the allegations and said that he was not informed about the reason for suspension.

Interestingly, Manoj Kumar is a former member of SFI, the student wing of the CPM, as well as its youth wing DYFI. He reportedly left the party following the brutal murder of RMP leader TP Chandrashekharan by CPM leaders.