Thiruvananthapuram: The poll-battered Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] appears to have committed a costly tactical blunder by allowing protests against Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids at the residence of former Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to spiral into violence earlier this week.
The ED searches were conducted as part of an investigation into alleged payments received by Exalogic Solutions, an IT firm owned by Vijayan’s daughter T. Veena, from Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) between 2017 and 2021. Investigators are examining whether services corresponding to those payments were actually rendered.
Apart from the house rented by Vijayan in Thiruvananthapuram after the recent Assembly elections, ED teams also searched several other locations across Kerala. These included Vijayan’s family residence in Pinarayi in Kannur district, the residence of former minister P. A. Mohamed Riyas in Kozhikode, and premises linked to CMRL, which is under investigation in the case.
Vijayan and his daughter have consistently maintained that the transactions involving Exalogic Solutions were lawful, transparent and properly disclosed before regulatory authorities.
The ED action came a day after the Kerala High Court permitted the agency to examine the money-laundering angle in the matter.
As news of the searches spread, CPI(M) workers began gathering outside Vijayan’s residence in the state capital. Initially, the gathering appeared to be a routine show of solidarity and was expected to remain symbolic.
However, as the day progressed, the crowd continued to grow. Slogans against the Union government and central investigative agencies became increasingly strident. Several local party leaders, including former ministers, also arrived at the scene, encouraging the protesters.
The situation took a more serious turn in the evening when ED officials completed their work and began leaving the premises.
While the officials were escorted safely by central security personnel, a vehicle hired by the ED team was allegedly attacked by protesters. Television footage showed activists pelting the vehicle with bricks and concrete fragments, shattering its windows. The driver reportedly sustained injuries.
The incident subsequently led to the arrest of 19 CPI(M) workers, many of them associated with the party’s youth wing, DYFI. The arrests came after criticism that the local police had initially failed to disperse the crowd before the situation deteriorated.
Significantly, the violence occurred in the heart of Thiruvananthapuram, not far from the CPI(M)’s state headquarters.
Vijayan remained at home during the searches. Rather than appealing for restraint, he briefly addressed the gathering in the afternoon and thanked supporters for their solidarity. He described the ED action as part of what he called a politically motivated campaign by the Centre to target opposition parties through central agencies.
Political observers believe sections of the CPI(M) leadership may have viewed the protests as an opportunity to energise a demoralised cadre base still reeling from the party’s recent electoral defeat. Others suggest the mobilisation may also have been intended to divert attention from growing internal criticism of the leadership.
However, public perception appears less favourable.
Even some within the broader Left ecosystem privately acknowledge that allowing the protests to escalate into violence was a strategic mistake. Rather than generating sympathy, the episode risks reinforcing concerns about the party’s judgement at a time when it is attempting to rebuild credibility in opposition.
The incident has also raised uncomfortable questions for the party leadership.
If Vijayan and his daughter remain confident that all transactions under scrutiny were legitimate, critics ask why the issue needed to be taken to the streets rather than contested through legal and institutional channels.
The political consequences may not end there. When the matter comes up for further judicial consideration, investigators could potentially draw attention to the violence and disruption that accompanied the searches.
Whether the ED investigation ultimately establishes wrongdoing is a matter for the courts and investigating agencies to determine. Yet politically, the damage may already have begun.
By allowing a law-enforcement action to become a street confrontation, the CPI(M) may have inadvertently shifted public attention away from its allegations of political vendetta and towards questions about its own political strategy and conduct in the aftermath of a major electoral setback.
