KPCC seeks explanationfrom K.V. Thomas

The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) on Saturday sought an explanation from senior party leader K.V. Thomas, MP, who is facing flak for his reported appreciation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s management skills.

“What he is said to have spoken, going by media reports, is not in line with the party’s stance and a grave deviation. That’s why we have asked him to explain,” KPCC president M.M. Hassan said here on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Mr. Thomas claimed he was misquoted. The speech was reported by some media in a way that would create misunderstanding in the minds of the people.

He had only said that Mr. Modi used his management skills to implement the wrong and anti-people decisions taken by the Centre. “Mr. Modi is not a good administrator. But he has been able to curry favour with the media and even the judiciary with his management expertise. Although not a good administrator, he is moving ahead by misleading people with his management skills. I said that students of management can put his way of functioning to study,” said a rejoinder issued by him.

The district secretariat of the CPI(M) in Ernakulam too criticised Mr. Thomas’s speech as seeking to challenge all secularists, “as it comes just when the Mr. Modi is in the dock over his stance in the Kathua and Unnao rapes and the attacks on Dalits and minorities.’’

In a statement, district secretary P. Rajeev said the GST and demonetisation had brought untold miseries to the people across the country and plunged the economy in crisis. “That Mr. Thomas has become a Modi Bhaktan at a time when his own party, the Congress, is taking a clear stance against Mr. Modi’s policies demonstrates the party’s double standards,” he maintained.

The Youth Congress dubbed Mr. Thomas’s speech ‘irresponsible, deplorable and unbecoming of a Congress worker.’ In a letter addressed to Mr. Hassan, Youth Congress State general secretary T.G. Sunil demanded that the KPCC look into what inspired Mr. Thomas to praise Mr. Modi when a series of ill-conceived policies, unruly occurrences, and heinous incidents had put Mr. Modi on the back foot.