A court in Kerala granted permission to register a case against the state president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) K Surendran, on allegations of offering money to Janathipathya Rashtriya Party (JRP) leader CK Janu to contest the recent Assembly Election. The Sulthan Bathery Judicial First Class Magistrate in Wayanad granted permission to register a First Information Report (FIR) against Surendran for offering money to Janu to contest the election from Sulthan Bathery as a candidate of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
Earlier this month, JRP's state treasurer Praseetha Azhikode came out with the allegation that Surendran gave Rs 10 lakh to popular tribal leader CK Janu to come back to the NDA, which she had parted ways with in 2018. Praseetha released an audio conversation she had with Surendran on the subject as proof. However, both Janu and Surendran denied the allegation.
Janu joined back the alliance in March this year, hardly a month before the April Assembly election during a function attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Janu, known for her leadership in the Muthanga protests in Kerala, left the Communist Party of India (Marxist) -- CPI(M) -- and formed the JRP before joining with the NDA in 2016.
K Surendran has also been booked recently for charges of bribery after it was alleged that he bribed a candidate, with a similar name, to withdraw from the election. A Kerala court had granted permission to book Surendran under sections 171 B (bribery) and E (punishment for bribery) for allegedly bribing Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidate K Sundara to withdraw his nomination from the Manjeswaram seat. Sundara came out with the allegation that he was paid Rs 2.5 lakh and a smartphone for it.
Sundara was later given police protection after he alleged that BJP members were threatening his mother and asking him to change his statement.