Kerala CPM leader M V Govindan faces row over meeting with Astrologer
Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala CPI(M) state secretary and politburo member M V Govindan has sparked a controversy after a photograph of him with prominent Kannur-based astrologer Madhava Poduval went viral on social media.
The issue reportedly surfaced during the CPI(M) state committee meeting on Thursday, where concerns over leaders secretly consulting astrologers were raised. However, Govindan denied reports of criticism from party colleagues, stating, “There was no such criticism.”
Poduval said he has known Govindan for years and that the visit earlier this year was a personal gesture while he was recovering from surgery, not for astrological advice. He added that he has met several political leaders, including Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Defending Govindan, senior CPI(M) leader A K Balan said meeting astrologers does not imply acceptance of their beliefs. “We are all staunch advocates of dialectical materialism,” he remarked.
The CPI(M), which champions scientific temper, has previously objected to members seeking astrological guidance. In 2008, former MP A P Abdullakuty faced flak for turning to Nadi astrology, leading to his eventual ouster from the party.
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'Rear-guard action': BJP over Mamata accepting sports minister's resignation after Messi event
New Delhi (PTI): The BJP on Tuesday alleged that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's accepting Aroop Biswas' resignation as the state sports minister is nothing but a "rear-guard action" to douse public anger over the mismanagement of football icon Lionel Messi's event last week.
BJP co-in-charge for West Bengal Amit Malviya alleged that this is also an "open confession" that the Messi event fiasco was not accidental but a government-manufactured disaster, borne out of the poor governance of Banerjee, her ministers and the state bureaucracy.
Banerjee on Tuesday accepted Biswas' resignation as the sports minister in the wake of the controversy over the mismanagement of football icon Messi's event last week, a senior leader of the ruling TMC said.
Biswas, who had written to the chief minister seeking to be relieved of his responsibilities as sports minister, will continue as a cabinet minister, retaining charge of the power department.
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Reacting to the development, Malviya said in a post on X, "TMC Sports Minister Aroop Biswas resigns after the Messi fiasco and Mamata Banerjee accepts it in record time."
"Do not mistake this for accountability; this is nothing but a rear-guard action to douse public anger. anger! This is not 'Raj Dharma'," he added.
The BJP leader alleged that the incident was the outcome of "loot" of common people which is "so synonymous" with the TMC.
The incident was also the outcome of the "shameless VIP culture that TMC thrives on and deep-rooted cronyism promoted by Banerjee," he charged.
Malviya further alleged that Biswas' resignation exposes a "collective failure of Mamata Banerjee, her partisan bureaucracy, and her crony cabinet".
"This is a symbolic sacrifice, a political hoax, soon to be buried under layers of bureaucracy, with no justice, no accountability, and no remorse," the BJP leader said, adding, "No resignation will bring back the time lost, the money wasted, or the stolen chance for football lovers to witness Messi in Kolkata."
