A M Arif, CPM’s Member of Parliament representing Alappuzha, has sparked a fresh controversy on the eve of the crucial Assembly elections in Kerala by making offensive remarks against Aritha Babu, the young Congress candidate for the Kayamkulam constituency. Speaking at an election meeting of the CPM-led Left Democratic Front’s (LDF) nominee, the MP reminded Aritha that she was contesting an Assembly poll and not an election to the local milk society.

Aritha, who makes a living selling milk, is among the youngest and most notable candidates of the United Democratic Front (UDF), which is headed by the Congress.

Arif’s words, a video of which is going viral on social media, have already attracted sharp reaction on social media platforms. In the video, Arif says, “This isn’t an election to a milk society, but the Assembly polls. Please clarify whether the poor background of a person was the criterion for candidate selection.” Several people in the audience are also seen appreciating the abuse.

Meanwhile, Arif clarified that his reference was not aimed at the occupation of Aritha Babu and that he was taking a jibe at how the Congress party's campaign is relying heavily on the poor background of the candidate alone.

Earlier, Aritha had faced a cyber-attack where she was targeted for being a ‘milk woman’. Her house too was later attacked by some miscreants. Now, the local MP himself has made an insulting comment on the Congress candidate’s profession.

Arif ridiculed the entire working class: Aritha

Reacting to the MP’s statement, Aritha said that he had insulted the entire working class. “Arif’s comments were indeed painful and cause humiliation to all workers. They should never have been uttered by a people’s representative,” said the UDF candidate.

Earlier, former Idukki MP Joyce George found himself the target of widespread outrage after he made a nasty comment against Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi.

“He will only go to women’s colleges. Then he will teach them to twist and twirl. My dear girls, don’t do such things in front of him. He is not married,” George said, in an apparent reference to Gandhi’s visit to a college in Ernakulam where he shared Aikido tips with the students.