Dinesh Mani refutes allegation over candidature of Christy Fernandez

Kochi: CPI-M Ernakulam district secretary Dinesh Mani on Wednesday rebuffed allegations over the Lok Sabha candidature of retired IAS officer Christy Fernandez in Ernakulam constituency.

Talking to Manorama News channel on Wednesday, Mani said that there was no influence by any ‘outside party’ in the decision to give the Ernakulam seat to Fernandez.

The CPI-M leader said there was no tussle in the party over the issue, adding, “Christy Fernandez was a suitable candidate for the LDF.”

He added that the defeat of Fernandez should not be made a big issue as the LDF has a history of its independent candidate losing the election by more than one lakh vote in Ernakulam constituency.

After the CPI, the cash-for-seat row started haunting the CPI-M following some remarks made by senior party leader and former LDF convenor M M Lawrence.

Lawrence had said that he was not aware how a person who had no connections with the party was made the candidate against a Congress veteran in a crucial election.

“There were several stories about Christy’s entry into the electoral fray. I will not repeat them. But I would caution parties to be more careful in future while selecting candidates. People will accept only those who have a track record of working among them,” the senior CPI-M leader added.