A controversy has arisen in the Kerala CPI-M as State Secretary M.V. Govindan dismissed queries regarding Bineesh Kodiyeri’s ongoing exclusion from party membership. Despite Govindan downplaying the issue as local, tensions within the party have surfaced publicly post-election. Bineesh, son of late leader Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, remains sidelined despite being acquitted in a past drug case that had caused embarrassment to the party.
Behind the scenes, a deeper internal conflict within the CPI(M) has emerged, coinciding with the party’s struggles following the Left Democratic Front’s significant defeat in Kerala. Bineesh, a former party member with ties to the AKG Centre branch, had his membership frozen in 2020 after an arrest in a drug-related case. Despite being fully acquitted by the Karnataka High Court in 2023, his requests for reinstatement have been repeatedly denied by the state leadership.
The issue came to a head during a recent district committee meeting in Thiruvananthapuram, where party leaders questioned the continued isolation of Bineesh despite legal clearance. Some members argued that the treatment of Kodiyeri Balakrishnan’s son amounted to discrimination, given his staunch support for the CPI(M) on various platforms. Govindan, however, maintained a firm stance within party circles, referencing a social media post by Bineesh that had apparently irked certain party leaders.
Bineesh, currently serving as the Joint Secretary of the Kerala Cricket Association, finds himself at the center of a political storm within the CPI-M. The Kodiyeri family, recently in the spotlight due to a party rebel’s victory in Kannur, remains embroiled in the ongoing saga. Despite the turmoil, both Kodiyeri’s wife and Bineesh have expressed openness to those paying respects to the departed leader.
