
CPIM leader and DYFI8217;s former Kerala state joint secretary M R Murali was sacked from the primary membership of the party, after he defied a party directive to quit the vice-chairmanship of the municipal council at Shornur in Palakkad district.
Murali8217;s challenge and the party8217;s hasty action against him is likely to open a fresh round of factional feuding in the CPIM8217;s Kerala unit, which projected an image of unity after the state conference held in Kottayam this year. This is the first disciplinary action against a party leader after the Kottayam conclave.
The action taken against Murali, a leader of the faction led by Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan, has the endorsement of state secretary and Politburo member Pinarayi Vijayan, according to sources.
Murali had also served as a member of the CPIM Palakkad district committee. Several V S faction leaders in Palakkad, including N N Krishnandas and A Ajayakumar, both MPs, had faced party disciplinary action. Murali has been the target of the rival faction for some time. He was asked to vacate the vice-chairmanship of the municipal council after he participated in an agitation, which the party did not endorse.