Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Assembly VD Satheesan on Sunday reiterated his allegation that EP Jayarajan, the convener of the Left Democratic Front (LDF), and Rajeev Chandrasekhar, the Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, had business links. Chandrasekhar is the BJP candidate from the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha constituency.
Speaking to media persons in Pathanamthitta on Sunday, Satheesan said that he would produce evidence if a case is filed in this regard. “Earlier, the link between the LDF convener and the Union Minister was latent but now it has emerged as a public partnership,” Satheesan said. He alleged that Jayarajan colluded with Rajeev Chandrasekhar to avoid an ED investigation against the Vaideha resort owned by his family. Satheesan said that Vaideha and Niramaya have now merged into a single entity.
The senior Congress leader said, “Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is afraid of the BJP. That is why he is trying to make BJP happy by aligning with Jayarajan. Why does Jayarajan harbour so much affection for BJP candidates,” Satheesan questioned. “They are attempting to create space for the BJP in Kerala,” he added.
Jayarajan had recently claimed that the electoral battle in Kerala is between the LDF and the BJP as both have fielded good candidates.
Meanwhile, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar denied Satheesan’s allegations that he had business links with Jayarajan. The Union Minister stated that he has never met the LDF convener. He clarified that he will not entertain such allegations and that his sole priority is to focus on development.
Satheesan had earlier claimed that Jayarajan and his family had a business association with Rajeev Chandrasekhar. “So it’s natural for him to say that the BJP candidates in a few constituencies are strong, as he has to please his business partner,” Satheesan alleged.
“Not long ago, R Balasankar, a former editor of RSS mouthpiece ‘Organiser’, had pointed out a connection between the CPM and the Sangh Parivar,” Satheesan remarked.