Thiruvananthapuram, March 10 – The wife of Kerala Transport Minister K. B. Ganesh Kumar announced on Tuesday that she would drop her complaint against him, as he had admitted his mistake and apologized.
This decision came as a relief for the ruling CPI(M)-led LDF in Kerala, with State Assembly Speaker A. N. Shamseer stating that, given the couple's efforts to resolve the issue, it was a "closed chapter".
Shamseer said that the matter could be left to the people who will decide during the upcoming assembly elections, the dates of which will be announced soon.
Meanwhile, the Congress intensified its demand for the minister's resignation, arguing that the issue could not be easily resolved.
The minister, on the other hand, made it clear that he would not resign.
Speaking to a news channel in the morning, Ganesh Kumar's wife, Bindhu Menon, said that she did not take his calls, which prompted him to call her sister and "speak emotionally".
"He said, in an emotional manner, that a mistake had been made on his part. There have been many mistakes in our long marriage, but I never said that I was leaving him or that I would go to the media or take legal action," she said.
"My intention was not to damage the image of the government or my husband. That is what I said yesterday. He called this morning and apologized and said we could resolve the issue. That is what I was waiting for. Definitely, I will not proceed with the complaint now. We will resolve it together," Menon told the channel.
She further stated that there had been many issues during her 13-year-long marriage with the minister, but this incident would not affect their relationship.
Menon said that her allegations were made in an "emotional outburst" after the minister denied her claims of infidelity and termed her call to 112 – the Emergency Response Support System – as "madness".
"Everyone makes mistakes in life, and because he was a minister, people know what he did. But the minister does not need to apologize to the public. If I am living with him, he only needs to apologize to me."
"I do not intend to take revenge, because it is very easy for me to say that I don't want anything, and I would proceed with a case. I could have done that earlier, but I did not, because I love him so much," she said.
Menon requested that no one discuss the issue on social media.
Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president Sunny Joseph demanded Kumar's resignation, stating that it was not a simple family matter.
"If the minister does not resign, then the chief minister should take action," Joseph said while speaking to reporters in Delhi.
He said that the government, the Chief Minister, and the LDF need to make their stand clear on the issue.
Joseph further stated that when similar allegations were made against Kumar when he was in the UDF government, he was forced to resign.
"So, it is not just double standards on the part of the government, it is a betrayal of the people," he contended.
Similar views were expressed by Leader of Opposition in the state assembly V D Satheesan, senior Congress leaders Ramesh Chennithala and K Muraleedharan, and party MP Jebi Mather.
Satheesan pointed out that when such allegations were made against Congress leaders, they were sidelined or removed from the party.
He said that in 2013, when Kumar faced similar family issues, the CPI(M) and Pinarayi Vijayan demanded his resignation from the Oommen Chandy cabinet.
Kumar was asked to resign back then, Satheesan added.
"The same people are now saying that no action is required because it is a family matter," he said.
"What we say and do is the same. But they (CPIM and LDF) are all talk," he added.
Chennithala and Muraleedharan, in separate responses, said they were waiting to see what action will be taken by the chief minister, who also heads the Home Department.
Mather sought to know why the CM and the women leaders of CPI(M) were silent on the issue.
Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan also demanded Kumar's resignation.
Kumar, while speaking at an event here, said he was not going to resign when there were only a few days left in the current government.
He also termed the news circulating about it as "assumptions of the media".
During the day, protest marches were held in Pathanamthitta by the UDF, KSU, Youth Congress, and Mahila Congress against Kumar.
Menon on Monday had leveled allegations of infidelity against him after he denied the rumours circulating on social media regarding the matter.
She had said there had been marital issues with Ganesh Kumar since their marriage in 2014.
The Kerala Congress (B) leader married Menon in 2014 after legally separating from Yamini Thankachy.
Menon said she had been living separately for the past several months because of Kumar's relationship with several women.
Kumar had dismissed the allegations circulating against him as "politically motivated" since the election was nearing.