Left Democratic Front (LDF) MLA PV Anvar on Thursday attacked chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan by calling him a ‘failure’ as the state’s home minister for not being able to rein in corrupt police officials and underscored the ‘inefficiency’ of the ongoing investigations against ADGP (law and order) MR Ajith Kumar.
Anvar, speaking to reporters at the PWD rest house in Nilambur, said, “For over three years, there has been constant smuggling of gold through an airport in the state and later being caught by the police (and misappropriated). How can this go on?”
“The chief minister has no right to remain the state’s home minister anymore. He is a total failure. It was right under his nose that then principal secretary M Sivasankar was in cahoots with Swapna Suresh (for gold smuggling). How did the chief minister not know about it? He had all the mechanisms like vigilance and intelligence wings of the police,” he said.
“If things proceed in this way, Pinarayi Vijayan will be the last Communist chief minister of Kerala,” he added.
Anvar’s press conference came four days after the CPI(M) publicly warned the legislator from attacking the party and the state government. The Nilambur MLA, in the first week of September, had formally handed over complaints to Vijayan and CPM state secretary MV Govindan with a litany of allegations against Ajith Kumar and P Sasi, the political secretary to the CM. While the top cop was accused of having links with gold smuggling gangs, misappropriating smuggled gold, tapping phone conversations of ministers and ordering murders, Sasi was alleged to have aided the police officer in the latter’s criminal actions. Multiple probes, by police and vigilance and anti-corruption bureau (VACB), were announced against Ajith Kumar by the state government. However, no investigation was launched by the party or the government against Sasi.
{{/usCountry}}Anvar’s press conference came four days after the CPI(M) publicly warned the legislator from attacking the party and the state government. The Nilambur MLA, in the first week of September, had formally handed over complaints to Vijayan and CPM state secretary MV Govindan with a litany of allegations against Ajith Kumar and P Sasi, the political secretary to the CM. While the top cop was accused of having links with gold smuggling gangs, misappropriating smuggled gold, tapping phone conversations of ministers and ordering murders, Sasi was alleged to have aided the police officer in the latter’s criminal actions. Multiple probes, by police and vigilance and anti-corruption bureau (VACB), were announced against Ajith Kumar by the state government. However, no investigation was launched by the party or the government against Sasi.
{{/usCountry}}“I am convinced that proper investigations are not taking place, judging by the nature of those probes. The police probe into the tree felling case is extremely pitiable,” said Anvar, referring to the complaint of illegal felling of valuable trees by certain officers from the camp office of Malappuram Superintendent of Police that he had given.
Accusing the chief minister of protecting Ajith Kumar and P Sasi, the MLA said he would approach the high court to “get justice” on the complaints he has made so far. Despite mounting “evidence” against the top cop including links in gold smuggling and misappropriation of wealth, the home department led by Vijayan declined to suspend the officer, he said.
“The chief minister tried to portray me as a culprit when he was asked by reporters. He went too far and it did a lot of damage to me. I thought the party would correct him. That did not happen. I still believed in the party to at least consider my complaint against P Sasi. But the state secretary said openly that there was no prima-facie truth in my allegations,” said Anvar.
The MLA, who once likened CM Vijayan to a “father-like figure”, said the latter’s graph has plummeted to zero and is ‘hated by a large section of the public and party workers.’
There was no response from the chief minister’s office to Anvar’s latest allegations.
CPM politburo member A Vijayaraghavan said the MLA’s remarks are not fitting of a Left leader. “His remarks are aimed at weakening the party and attacking the chief minister. They do not help the CPI(M). We had asked him previously to desist from such remarks. The remarks are not appropriate,” he said.