Congress and IUML symbols
Credit: DH Photo and Facebook/iumlkeralastate
Thiruvananthapuram: The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) in Kerala is suffering back to back embarrassments from key coalition partner Indian Union Muslim League (IUML).
In a latest instance, even as the UDF decided to boycott the CPM government's public outreach programme 'Nava Kerala Sadas', a local leader of the IUML attended the event and shared the stage with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in Kasargod on Sunday.
A recent decision of an IUML MLA to join the director board of Kerala Bank, the CPM controlled cooperative bank, also caused much embarrassment to the UDF as the UDF has been opposing the formation of Kerala Bank by merging district cooperative banks.
IUML senior leader and Lok Sabha MP E T Muhammed Basheer's recent remark that IUML would be only happy to attend Palestine solidarity meeting of CPM had also triggered much speculation that the IUML was moving closer to the CPM.
However, in all these instances the IUML leadership reiterated its affinity with the Congress and ruled out any truce with the CPM.
Abubacker Haji, a Kasargod-based businessman and local leader of IUML, caused the latest embarrassment by attending the mass outreach programme and expressing his gratitude for the event. He later told reporters that politics need to be mixed up with his participation at the event.
IUML state general secretary P M A Salam defended by stating that Abubacker was not holding any post in the party now.
The IUML leader's participation at the event also came close on the heels of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan accusing the Congress of forcing the opposition MLAs to keep off from the mass outreach programme.