Claim That Congress Never Sought Jana Sangh Votes Is Absurd: History Says Otherwise: Minister P Rajeev

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Industries and Law Minister P Rajeev on Monday dismissed claims by Opposition leader V D Satheeshan that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had relied on votes from Jana Sangh during his elections and consistently won with support from the Sangh Parivar.

Rajeev called the allegations “baseless,” clarifying that there was no separate Jana Sangh contesting elections in 1977, as it had already merged into the Janata Party. “There was no Jana Sangh in 1977; it was part of the Janata Party,” he said, adding that experts can verify the historical record.

Responding to Satheeshan’s assertion that no Congress MLA had ever won with RSS support, Rajeev provided historical context. “Every Malayali knows the facts. In 1960, when EMS Namboodiripad contested from Pattambi, Jana Sangh had planned to field a candidate but withdrew to avoid splitting the anti-communist vote. The party’s president, Deena Dhayal Upadhyaya, even campaigned for Congress candidate Raghavan Nair, yet EMS won decisively,” he said.

Rajeev further criticised Satheeshan for repeating claims without understanding Kerala’s political history. “He may say we tried but did not succeed, that could be true, but to claim Congress never sought Jana Sangh votes is absurd. He seems to have a habit of repeating disproven statements,” he added.

On the recent Satyagraha led by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in Palayalm, Thiruvananthapuram, Rajeev said it aimed to safeguard Kerala’s interests against the Centre’s financial policies. “The opposition could have joined forces to challenge the central government’s misdeeds, but they chose to boycott the strike. Their reluctance appears rooted in fear that the Thiruvananthapuram model cannot be implemented across the state,” he said.