THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state Janakeeya Prathirodha Jatha (Popular Defense Jatha) called by the CPM state committee will begin tomorrow in Kasaragod amid controversies and political attacks against the party by opponents. Although the Jatha was planned to expose the Centre's approach towards Kerala and corporate-communalization and to explain the Kerala government's welfare activities, the party is currently in a situation where it has to respond to the controversies that have placed it on the defensive.

The CPM leadership has found itself on the defensive due to various controversies such as the opposition protests against fuel cess and tax proposals in the budget, the resurgence of the gold smuggling controversy following the arrest of M Sivasankar and the revelations made by Akash Thillenkeri, the accused in the Shuhaib murder case. The major task for the party is to counter the political challenges created by all this.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will inaugurate the Jatha in Kumbla tomorrow evening. This is the first state march led by MV Govindan after becoming the state secretary of CPM. PK Biju is the manager, while M. Swaraj, CS Sujatha, Jaick C. Thomas and KT Jaleel are members. Youth will be given priority in the Jatha.