B L Santhosh added fuel to discord, feel leaders

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A section of BJP leaders feel that no action will be taken against the rival V. Muraleedharan camp as long as B. L. Santhosh, BJP’s national organising joint general secretary, is entrusted with the responsibility of the State. They feel that factionalism came to the fore after Santhosh came to the helm and made no secret of his support to Muraleedharan. Top State BJP leaders confirmed to DC about the long standing association between Santhosh and Muraleedharan. Santhosh who began his career as a RSS pracharak belongs to Kundapur in Karnataka.  Recently, Santhosh was caught on the wrong foot when the former Chief Minister and Karnataka State BJP president B. S. Yeddyyurappa accused him of inciting dissidence against him.

It sent shock waves across the party. Incidentally, a majority of the Kerala BJP leaders allege that Santhosh has been practicing the same principles in Kerala as well which should have been avoided. “Santhosh and Muraleedharan’s association in the party goes back several decades ever since the latter started his stint in ABVP. It was only after Santhosh was given the responsibility of the State, did the Kerala BJP leadership see repeated instances of factionalism”, said a top BJP leader to DC. At the recently-concluded core committee and State office bearers meeting, Santhosh had maintained that action would be taken against those leaders who had brought shame to the party not only at the State level, but at the national level, in the medical college scam.

BJP State general secretary M. T. Ramesh had threatened that he would leave the party if stringent action was not taken against those leaders who falsely implicated him in the medical college scam. “I am hoping that the national leadership will take an appropriate stand on those leaders who have been involved in the scam. We do not know how the enquiry process is going in the court of the national leadership. I am taking a wait and watch stand”, said Ramesh. It should be recalled that BJP national president Amit Shah, during his recent three-day visit, had warned Santhosh along with national Secretary H. Raja for not rising up to his expectations and controlling dissidence in the party in Kerala.