India, May 28 -- Kerala Minister K Muraleedharan on Thursday alleged that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) searches linked to former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan were aimed at shielding him from mounting criticism within the CPI(M).

Muraleedharan said the Congress neither supported the ED nor endorsed the searches carried out by the central agency. However, he questioned the timing of the action, claiming that such investigations should have taken place when Vijayan was serving as chief minister.

"We suspect that the ED searches were a rescue attempt as they came at a time when Vijayan was facing severe criticism from within the party," the minister alleged.

At the same time, Muraleedharan condemned the reported attack by CPI(M) wor...