Thiruvananthapuram: CPM leader A K Balan has firmly stated that he will not apologise for his remarks regarding the Marad violence controversy. He said that all the claims in the legal notice sent against him by the Jamaat-e-Islami are factually incorrect, misleading and deliberately orchestrated with malicious intent to demean and defame both him and his party before the public.
“Cases and courts are nothing new to me. I am a person who holds constitutional values firmly,” Balan said at a press conference. He also clarified that he will not provide the Rs 1 crore compensation demanded in the notice.
"I will not give them a penny till I die. If they are so poor, I can tell them ways to earn money. I will also not apologise in this matter," he stressed.
Balan alleged that the controversy was an attempt to portray him as having an anti-minority mindset. He emphasised that he left a successful professional life to enter public service and that, in his 60 years of political career, he has never faced any public objection. He lives with a commitment to the working class and loyalty to his party. In his public life, he has never acted in a manner that undermines secularism or shows hostility toward religious minorities. He suggested that the organisation that issued the notice should publicly declare its religious policy.

He explained that his remark mentioning Jamaat-e-Islami was simply a response to a journalist’s question and was highlighted by the Opposition leader, who misrepresented it to create controversy. The Chief Minister had already clarified the issue at a press conference. Balan stressed that he has only raised his voice against communalism, and has never made any disparaging remarks about anyone.

He further added that he has never spoken or acted in a way that threatens religious harmony. His comments were merely a cautionary note based on his experience in public life, not an act of defamation. Expressing a political opinion in good faith and highlighting risks for the nation and people is neither defamatory nor disrespectful. “It is a warning to prevent the repetition of dark chapters in history,” Balan said.
He also said if the Congress-led UDF comes to power in Kerala with the backing of the Jamaat-e-Islami, it will result in the "destruction of the state".

The CPM leader also held up a copy of the 'Quran' and said it talks about 'munafiqs' who are "fake believers".

"I am not that. I am a believer and a Communist who is loyal to the workers," he said and added that if he is sent to jail for defamation over his remarks about the Jamaat-e-Islami, the first thing he would do is finish reading the Quran.

Earlier, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had defended Balan by saying that the Marxist leader was only reminding people about a different picture of Kerala that existed in the past when he referred to the Marad riots.

(with PTI inputs)