Kochi: Kerala PCC president K Sudhakaran was on Friday arrested by the Crime Branch in a cheating case in which the prime accused is controversial antique dealer Monson Mavunkal, and later released on bail.
Sudhakaran later told reporters that he was arrested after several hours of questioning by the Crime Branch.
“They questioned me. After that, they recorded my arrest and then I was released on bail. I have faith in judiciary. I will face the case in court,” he told reporters here.
Following Sudhakaran’s arrest, the national leadership of Congress came down heavily on Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, saying he, just like Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has the “fascist attitude” of imprisoning those critical of his government.
AICC general secretary in-charge, communications, Jairam Ramesh said while the rest of the opposition in the country was on one track, Vijayan was acting as “Mundu Modi”.
“Rest of the Opposition is on one track nationally, while Pinarayi Vijayan is busy proving what has all along been known that he is Mundu Modi. This unwarranted harassment of Kerala PCC President K Sudhakaran based on a trumped-up case will only make our resolve stronger in Kerala,” Ramesh tweeted.
Later in the night, Congress and Youth Congress workers came out on the streets in various parts of the state and blocked roads in protest against Sudhakaran’s arrest.
Visuals of the protests on TV channels showed party workers blocking roads, burning effigies of Vijayan and holding marches in various parts of the state.
Sudhakaran, surrounded by several party leaders and workers, after he was released on bail said he was “fully confident” that the police had no evidence against him in the case for him to be punished.
“I am not afraid. I am not going to hide anywhere,” he said.
Asked about his links with Mavunkal, the KPCC chief said he has none.
Besides the national leadership of Congress, its senior party leaders in Kerala too criticised Sudhakaran’s arrest and termed it as a “political conspiracy”.
Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Kerala assembly, V D Satheesan contended that the Left government was “ruled by fear” and was therefore, trying to silence the opposition by such tactics.
He said both the Congress and the UDF opposition led by it would resist the Left government’s alleged move of filing false cases against the opposition leaders who are criticising the administration and making allegations of corruption against it.
Satheesan alleged that the actions of Vijayan in Kerala were a “carbon copy” of what Modi was doing in Delhi.
