THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Senior CPI(M) leader and former Kerala minister V Sivankutty on Monday dismissed as "false and baseless" media reports alleging that some party leaders had accepted money from the BJP to defeat him in Nemom constituency in the April 9 Assembly polls.
In a statement, the CPI(M) state committee member said the reports were aimed at tarnishing the image of the party and its cadre.
"The reports being circulated in a section of the media that some CPI(M) leaders accepted money from the BJP to defeat the LDF candidate in Nemom are completely false and against facts," he claimed.
Such propaganda is intended only to insult the party and lakhs of sincere party workers before society, he said.
Sivankutty said the CPI(M) was a movement that had grown through intense political struggles and interventions among the people.
He alleged that certain media organisations were deliberately misinterpreting the party's internal democracy and discussions to spread "fabricated stories".
"The party workers and people of Nemom and Thiruvananthapuram are united in fighting fascist forces and right-wing anti-people policies. Right-wing media are constantly trying to undermine this political awareness," he said.
The former general education minister said no one should think that such "fake news" could create divisions within the party or confusion among its cadre.
He asserted that the people would reject what he termed as "deliberate false propaganda" and "media agendas" aimed at weakening the party's mass base.
"The party will move forward more strongly in its struggle against anti-people forces," he added.
Sivankutty also urged party workers and the public to identify and isolate the "conspiracy and false propaganda" behind such reports.
His statement came a day after a section of the media reported allegations that some CPI(M) leaders had accepted money from the BJP to ensure the defeat of the LDF candidate in Nemom.
Nemom was one of the three Assembly constituencies won by the BJP in the April 9 Kerala Assembly polls.
BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar won the Nemom seat, defeating Sivankutty and Congress leader K S Sabarinathan in a triangular contest.