Thrissur: LDF convener A. Vijayaraghavan, who made a derogatory comment against Ramya Haridas, UDF candidate in Alathur, will face the music with Ramya filing a complaint against him at Alathur DySP office on Tuesday.
Vijayaraghavan, who is also CPM’s central committee member, had allegedly made lewd and sexist remarks against her during the LDF campaign meetings held in Ponnani and Kozhikode on Monday.
“The woman candidate of Alathur constituency had visited Kunhalikutty. I don’t know what will happen to her now,” Vijayaraghavan reportedly said.
Ramya has sought registering an FIR against him invoking sections of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and IPC sections for insulting womanhood.
Ramya told mediapersons on Tuesday that she did not take it as a personal attack on her.
“Rather, it is an attack on womanhood and a statement that insults women in public sphere. Is this the renaissance and women empowerment that the CPM and LDF were talking about during events like women’s wall?” she asked.
She also said that Vijayaraghavan had made a similar statement in Kozhikode during the event held for the official induction of Indian National League (INL) into the LDF last week.
“It is a deliberate attempt to insult womanhood and a conspiracy against me. He should have kept in mind that I too have a father, mother and brother back home and how such a remark will hurt them,” she noted.
The DySP office in Alathur has forwarded the complaint to Ponnani and Kozhikode police stations for inquiry.
Most of the sections in the SC/STs Atrocities Act are non-bailable and the police could take action if necessary, said experts.
No regrets says Vijayaraghavan
However, Vijayaragavan told reporters that he had made a political statement and that the portion in his speeches over Ramya meeting IUML leader P. K. Kunhalikutty was taken out of context and misinterpreted.
“I never meant to hurt Ramya and she is like a sister to me. If my words have hurt her I am also feeling the pain,” he said in Malappuram on Tuesday.
But he refused to withdraw his statement or issue an apology. LDF candidate in Alathur P.K. Biju also backed Vijayaraghavan citing that there was nothing unusual in the statement made by the convener.
Wadakkanchery MLA Anil Akkara, who is co-coordinating Ramya’s campaign, said that if necessary the party would move the High Court with the video clips of the controversial speeches.
