Kerala CPM Leader Kodiyeri Balakrishnan Says IAF Air Strike On Pakistan An Attempt To Sabotage Lok Sabha polls

Within hours of an air strike by dozen Indian Air Force (IAF) on Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) training camps at Balakot in Pakistan, secretary of the Kerala unit of Communist Party of India Marxist (CPI-M) Kerala, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, waded in to a controversy by claiming that the strike was part of an attempt by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to trigger a war and derail the upcoming general elections, The Week reported.

The powerful apparatchik, who is known to be a close associate of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, accused the BJP led Union government of trying to polarise communities through war mongering. He claimed BJP was fearing a defeat in the upcoming general election.

"Instead of finding a solution to the insurgency in Kashmir, the BJP government is trying to make things worse by making the people of Kashmir enemies of the state," he said, addressing a rally in connection with party's Kerala Samrakshana Yatra at Nedunkandam in Idukki district.

Known for his acerbic tongue, Kodiyeri is no stranger to controversies.

During the Sabarimala agitation, he equated the shrine devotees to Khalistani terrorists. He also criticised women devotees who were taking part in the protests and accused them of being RSS human shield used. He claimed that RSS was using tactics similar to terrorists by employing women and children as a human shield.

In October last year, he sets tongues wagging when he drove up to a political rally in a luxury car. His son Binoy Kodiyeri has been accused of cheating a Dubai-based travel agency of Rs 13 crore.

Hasan Ismaeel Abdulla Almarzooqi, owner of Dubai-based JAAS Tourism LLC had sought the help of Indian authorities in extraditing Binoy from India to Dubai alleging that he has cheated him for an amount of Rs. 7.87 crores, which extends to Rs 13 crore including bank interests and legal charges.

The complainant alleged that Binoy had fled Dubai after borrowing money from the company account on the pretext of purchasing an Audi car and for investing in businesses in India, Nepal, UAE and Saudi Arabia.