Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 9: Keralam Chief Minister V D Satheesan on Wednesday said the Congress would not condone incidents such as the recent clash involving MLA Ramya Haridas and party members in Chirayinkeezhu.
Speaking at a press conference here, the CM said the party had taken strong action in the matter and was monitoring the issue.
He said the details would be provided by the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee chief.
“Party leaders have discussed the issue. The party will not condone such matters,” he said in response to reporters’ queries.
The incident, in which Haridas allegedly sustained injuries, had led to conflicting accounts of what transpired.
Haridas had alleged that she was attacked and threatened by local Congress leaders, while district panchayat member Sajith Muttambalam and S Sajad said the MLA and Palayam Pradeep confronted them over a WhatsApp post, leading to a scuffle.
The KPCC subsequently suspended Pradeep and Sajad from the primary membership of the party based on a report submitted by LDF convener M M Hassan, who was tasked with looking into the matter.
They were suspended for “serious organisational indiscipline” that brought disrepute to the party in public.
The CM referred to the issue of personal staff appointments made by his administration, which has reportedly come under criticism over the financial burden they would place on the government.
Satheesan said 476 personal staff members had been appointed by his administration, compared with 787 during the previous LDF government.
He said he had appointed 31 personal staff members and could appoint more as permitted under the rules.
He also said none of the ministers had appointed more than 25 personal staff members, while several ministers during the LDF rule had appointed more than that. (PTI)
