Journalist K.R. Ajayan, who was till recently the editor in-charge of Deshabhimani’s weekend supplement, has resigned, weeks after a headline with the words ‘Kallan Vijayan’ (Vijayan, the thief) in it allegedly sparked an internal row.

Mr. Ajayan said he put in his papers on Friday after meeting the General Manager of Deshabhimani, the CPI(M) mouthpiece, and on being given the assurance that his service benefits would not be affected.

At the centre of the controversy was the headline ‘Kallan Vijayan, Dhanya Natakagramam, Muthippara P.O.,’ given to a feature article planned in July on a veteran theatre artiste from Muthippara in Thiruvananthapuram district. Following objections to the headline, the supplement was allegedly published later after replacing the article in question.

Mr. Ajayan, meanwhile, had reportedly been asked to give an explanation, which he says he did. He had stood by his choice of headline, and, subsequently, was relieved of his duties. Journalist T.C. Rajesh, who wrote the article, later published it on his Facebook page.

The allegedly censored piece had put the CPI(M) in a spot, with its Resident Editor M. Swaraj blaming the non-publication of the periodical supplement on July 19 on a “technical error”.