UNION home minister Rajnath Singh sparked a controversy during his two-day visit to Kerala, by gleefully accepting a headgear from RSS cadre Santhosh, a notorious criminal in Thiruvananthapuram and the first accused in the case of 2008 murder of CPI(M) worker V V Vishnukumar. Notwithstanding the fact that Singh called for ending the menace of political violence and killings, he adorned a headgear from the murder accused on his September 27 visit to the famous Sri Padmanabhaswami Temple in Thiruvananthapuram. After visiting family members and relatives of Manoj, an RSS cadre killed recently in Kadiroor in Kannur district, Singh announced that he would recommend for this case to be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Hinting at the alleged involvement of CPI(M) in the murder, he said that “we have to check the political violence and all parties must come on board and oppose the killing of innocent people”. Describing the killing of Manoj as "very unfortunate", the home minister said at a meeting in RSS office in Kadiroor that no political ideology could be suppressed by violence and one should counter any political ideology only through another ideological view and "not through gun or violence”. After denouncing CPI(M) as the perpetrators of the murder of Manoj, Singh reached Thiruvananthapuram and paid a visit to Sri Padmanabhaswami Temple, where Santhosh hugged Singh and put an ornamental headgear on his head. Santhosh led the gang of RSS criminals to kill CPI (M) worker Vishnukumar on April 1 in 2008 and he was made as the first accused in the case, whose trial is about to begin. The killing occurred near the Passport office. Santhosh was identified by the witnesses in the identification parade held in jail. The photograph of Santhosh felicitating Singh was published in various dailies on Sunday. The Public Relations Department send this photo to all print media on Saturday. CPI (M) state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan said the rapport between RSS and Congress leaders has been made visible with the haste decision of a CBI probe into the Manoj murder case. He said Kerala home minister Ramesh Chennithala is eager to appease the RSS.