The Kerala assembly on Friday saw heated exchanges between the ruling LDF and Opposition UDF MLAs over the controversial Facebook post in connection with the Lok Sabha elections in the Vadakara constituency.

Congress MLA Mathew Kuzhalnadan and RMP MLA KK Rema targeted the LDF during the Question Hour in the Assembly by asking what action was taken against former CPI(M) MLA and state committee member KK Lathika, who shared the controversial post on her Facebook page (when?) before deleting it .

On the eve of the LS election in Vadakara, Lathika had shared an alleged fake WhatsApp screenshot that sought to portray Shafi Parambil, the Congress candidate in Vadakara, as a ‘pious man who offers namaz five times a day’ and his rival KK Shailaja of the CPI(M) as a non-Muslim ‘kafir’.

Lathika had shared the screenshot by appealing, seemingly at the UDF, to not spread extreme communalism. The screenshot was circulated in the name of Muslim Students Front (MSF) member PK Muhammad Khasim, and the image was later proven by police to be fabricated. The MSF is the young wing of the IUML, an ally of Congress in the UDF coalition.

After the screenshot was proven to be fake, Lathika removed it from her Facebook page (when?), triggering accusations by the UDF that it was manufactured by the LDF to target Shafi as a Muslim figure and in turn garner votes from the majority community for Shailaja. A Youth Congress leader also filed a police complaint (when?) demanding action against Lathika for ‘provoking enmity between religious communities’.

In the Assembly on Friday, KK Rema asked, “Can the government state under what charges has a case been filed against those including KK Lathika who used the ‘kafir’ post for communal gains?”

Responding to the questions, minister MB Rajesh, on behalf of CM Pinarayi Vijayan, said, “Two FIRs have been filed in connection with the incident at Vadakara police station. The government views it extremely seriously. The investigations are going on. To identify the profile details, the police has sought information from Facebook. Once the information is retrieved, the investigation will go into the next stage.”

At the same time, the CPI(M) minister also sought to defend his party colleague. “In the said Facebook post, Lathika had written, ‘This is such extreme communalism. Shouldn’t our state exist even after elections? Such extreme communalism must not be spread’. I want to ask, is this post communal in nature or does it speak against communalism?”

The issue veered into a full-blown war of wards between the ruling and opposition benches.

Leader of the Opposition VD Satheesan said, “A few lawmakers of the ruling party are deliberately trying to deviate the discussion on the issue by asking questions which are not connected to this at all.”

The controversy had roiled the election campaign in Vadakara, where Shafi Parambil and KK Shailaja battled it out. The Congress’ Parambil eventually won the seat by a handsome margin of over 114,000 votes.