Thiruvananthapuram: A woman has accused the son of Communist Party of India Marxist (CPM) state secretary of sexually abusing her in Mumbai.

This dark spot comes after the CPM faced a humiliating defeat in the recent Lok Sabha elections.

Binoy Kodiyeri, son of Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, refuted the allegation, telling media persons that it was “an effort at blackmail”.

The Mumbai police have registered a first information report for sexual assault, cheating and criminal intimidation against Kodiyeri, based on the complaint of the 33-year-old woman who hails from Bihar and first met Kodiyeri while she was in Dubai.

The woman has alleged that she and Kodiyeri had a relationship for years and that she has an eight-year-old child with him. She claims Kodiyeri had promised to marry her but had dishonoured that commitment. Kodiyeri has also filed a complaint against the woman to police in Kannur.

The woman’s complaint says she and Kodiyeri have been in a relation since 2008 and that of late he had stopped taking her calls. She said it was many years after she began a relationship with Kodiyeri that she learned that he was married and had two children.

She has also stated that Kodiyeri rented her an apartment in Mumbai where she stayed with their child. When the rental agreement expired, he got her another apartment. She said Kodiyeri never introduced her to his family, and that she learned about them through his social media profile.

The development instantly triggered political duelling in Kerala.

“Kodiyeri Balakrishnan should shed his silence on the matter. When his sons were earlier involved in financial fraud, it was the CPM that came forward to defend them. Therefore, the CPM ought to explain the allegation against Binoy Kodiyeri,” said K.P. Prakash Babu, state president of the Yuva Morcha, the youth wing of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Congress leader Bindu Krishna said the allegation against Kodiyeri pointed to CPM leaders’ children showering on bar dancers the hard-earned money of the poor workers in Kerala who contributed to building up the communist party.

CPM politburo member Brinda Karat said the party would not get involved in the case since it was a personal issue. The central leadership of the CPM has also taken a similar stance.