The CPI-M in Kerala is in a tight spot after the construction of a memorial for two of its party workers who were killed in a blast while making bombs at Chettakkandy near Panoor in the Kannur district.

The memorial was built for CPI-M workers, Shaiju and Subish, who were killed in an explosion that occurred while they were making bombs in a secluded area on top of a hill in June 2015. Four others were seriously injured in the incident. It has been reported that the memorial built at AKG Nagar, Chettakkandy on the contribution from the public will be inaugurated by CPI-M State Secretary MV Govindan on May 22.

When the duo was killed, the party rejected them. Then state secretary of CPIM Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said those who were killed had nothing to do with the party and are not party workers. However, despite Balakrishnan’s denial, then Kannur district CPI-M Secretary P Jayarajan was in the forefront during their funeral.

Incidentally, it was near Panoor that one person was killed and three were injured when a crude bomb they were allegedly making exploded last month. The CPI-M denied that the person, Sherin, who killed in the blast, had anything to do with the party. However, local CPI-M leaders visited Sherin’s house and this had come under fire from the Congress-led UDF and BJP.

Reacting to the news of the inauguration of the memorial, senior Congress leader and former state home minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan said the CPI-M is known for its hypocrisy as it says one thing and does the opposite.

“First they deny any connection with the killed and then they turn them into martyrs of the party,” he said.

Questioning CPI-M’s double standards, Opposition leader VD Satheesan, said, “The party had denied connections with those killed in the blast in 2015. Still, the bodies of the deceased were received by P Jayarajan, then CPI-M Kannur district secretary.”

KPCC President K Sudhakaran said the incident exposes CPI-M’s mentality towards terrorism. “The party had distanced itself from the deceased when the blast occurred in 2015. But later, the party observed their death anniversary as martyr’s day. Now, a memorial has been set up for those involved in the criminal activity,” he said.

Shaiju and Subish died on June 6, 2015, when a bomb they were making exploded in a secluded area atop a hill. Four others were injured at the time.