Congress Expels Four Leaders for Attending Periya Double Murder Accused Son's Wedding

Thiruvananthapuram: Four senior leaders of the Congress party in Kerala have been expelled for attending the wedding ceremony of the son of a person accused in the Periya double murder case.

PCC President K Sudhakaran has expelled KPCC member Balakrishnan Periya, former block Congress President Rajan Periya, and former Mandalam Presidents Pramod Periya and Ramakrishnan Periya from the primary membership of the party.

They were present at the wedding ceremony of N Balakrishnan's son, the former CPM local secretary and the 13th accused in the murder case of two Youth Congress workers, who is presently released on bail.

Youth Congress workers Kripesh, aged 19, and Sarath Lal P.K., aged 24, were brutally murdered in Periya, Kasargod district, on February 17, 2019.

Balakrishnan's son got married in Payyannur, and the couple hosted a reception on May 7. Photos of Congress leaders at the reception surfaced on social media, sparking considerable anger among party workers.

Disciplinary action was initiated following a report from an inquiry commission appointed by the PCC, which found that the Congress leaders had made a grave error. This act was seen as an insult to the memory of martyrs and had a demoralizing effect on the workers.

It has been alleged that the DCC leadership has been neglecting the martyrs' families in the district.