Congress Expels Kerala Leader AP Abdullakutty for Praising PM Narendra Modi

Thiruvananthapuram: The state committee of Congress party has shown leader AP Abdullakutty to the door for non-compliance with the party norms. The action comes in the wake of Abdullakutty repeatedly letting down the party leaders and not changing his stand on praising the deeds of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a Facebook post.

The expulsion was confirmed in an official statement issued by the party. He is also said to have given the cold shoulder on the party’s demand for an explanation.

The party found Abdullakutty to have violated party norms by putting up a post in praise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “An interesting factor that makes him (Modi) so popular is that he inculcated Gandhian values in his governance,” the controversial post reads. The party later constituted a committee to probe into the matter.

Soon after the expulsion, Abdullakutty said the reaction from KPCC president Mullappally Ramachandran occurred as expected. He added saying Kerala should not let itself be painted in a bad light by ridiculing Modi. Furthermore, the Congress leader said Modi succeeded by putting into practice what Gandhi has envisaged.

Quizzed about joining BJP, Abdullakutty said he is not in that state of mind of giving it a thought.

Abdullakutty, a formerly SFI leader, was termed Albhuthakutty’ (wonder child) after he trounced sitting MP Mullappally Ramachandran in 1999 elections. A decade ago, Abdullakutty, an MP from Kannur, faced expulsion from CPI (M) after he extolled the Gujarat Model of Development mooted by Narendra Modi, the then Chief Minister of Gujarat.

“Modi’s efforts to bring development to his state was worthy of emulation even in the face of disagreement over his political policies,” he is quoted as saying in a Malayalam Television channel in Dubai in 2009.

Soon, he was expelled from CPI (M) and subsequently joined the Congress to win the Kannur seat in a by poll. He was re-elected in the 2011 Assembly Polls. Since tasting a defeat for Congress from the Communist bastion of Thalassery in 2016, Abdullakutty has not been holding any party position.

However, BJP is positive towards inducting the expelled right-wing leader. “CPI (M) had expelled Abdullakutty for the same reason. Back then, Congress welcomed that move. Abdullakutty had a discussion with party sympathisers,” says K. Renjith, state cell coordinator of BJP.