# Rahul's Blunt 'No Hug for Vijayan' Remark Stirs INDIA Bloc; CPI(M) Says It Only Wants Him to Stop Aiding the ED

> After Rahul Gandhi's INDIA bloc address went public, CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby clarified that the Congress leader was merely advised to avoid becoming a 'helper' of the ED and the Modi government by seeking the arrest of opposition leaders.

**Type:** article · **Category:** Politics · **Published:** 2026-06-13 · **Source:** TrendKia
**Canonical:** https://trendkia.com/en/politics/kerala-vivada-para-rahula-ki-do-tuka-makapa-ka-palatavara-vijayana-ko-gale-lagan-531 · **Language:** English
**Tags:** Rahul Gandhi, CPI(M), INDIA bloc, Pinarayi Vijayan, M A Baby, Kerala politics, Congress, ED

A single remark by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi about Kerala politics has once again exposed the fault lines within the 'INDIA' bloc. Speaking at the alliance's June 8 meeting, Rahul stated flatly that he could not embrace former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan because his political battle with him was still on. That address became public on Friday, and a day later, on Saturday, the Marxist Communist Party (CPI(M)) hit back sharply.

## What the CPI(M) Sought to Clarify
CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby took to 'X' to argue that Rahul's comment had been pulled out of context. He wrote, “Nobody is asking Rahul Gandhi to hug Pinarayi Vijayan.” According to Baby, the party's actual demand was something altogether different.

He went on, “On the contrary, we are only asking him to refrain from becoming a helper of the ED and the Modi government by demanding the arrest of Pinarayi Vijayan and other opposition leaders. This is not the job of the Leader of the Opposition.” In other words, the party's point was that a stance which lends weight to agencies like the Enforcement Directorate (ED) ill-suits someone who leads the opposition.

## What Rahul Gandhi Said at the Meeting
During his address, Rahul Gandhi left little room for ambiguity. He said, “We have our own political differences, but if you are telling me to go and hug the former chief minister of Kerala, I cannot and will not do so, because my political fight with him continues.”

He made the remark against the backdrop of the Kerala assembly election campaign, during which top Congress leaders had launched stinging attacks on the then Left Democratic Front (LDF) government—something the CPI(M) had objected to. Rahul also added, “We have to adopt a flexible stance and understand that we are being attacked with full force, in order to prove that the opposition is weak and scattered.”

## The Objection Raised Inside the Meeting
Sources indicate the issue did not surface by chance. CPI(M) Rajya Sabha member John Brittas had voiced concern during the meeting itself over the allegations made during the poll campaign, and it was in response to this that Rahul made his remark.

## The Root of the Friction: The 'Silent Understanding' Charge
The tension, in fact, began during the Kerala assembly election campaign. At that time, the Congress had alleged that there was a kind of so-called 'silent understanding' between the Left party and the BJP—a charge the CPI(M) found deeply objectionable.

In connection with this, Baby had written to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge even before the meeting to register his displeasure. In the letter he argued that such allegations were not in keeping with the cooperative spirit of the opposition alliance—meaning that statements of this kind erode the trust among partner parties.

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