Kerala MLA Rahul Mamkootathil

Thiruvananthapuram: Congress, already on the defensive after the survivor lodged a formal complaint against the MLA, moved swiftly Thursday, expelling Mamkootathil from the party’s primary membership within minutes of the court order. AICC had reportedly cleared the action soon after KPCC president Sunny Joseph received a rape complaint from another woman on Tuesday.Earlier, AICC general secretary in charge of Kerala, Deepa Dasmunsi, reportedly told the Congress brass strong action was unavoidable as the allegations had severely damaged the party’s image, especially ahead of assembly polls next year. The brass was learnt to have asked the state unit to take stern action against him, but KPCC held it off until the court verdict, apparently to avoid further embarrassment and pre-empt internal dissent.