Probe against Kerala ADGP an eyewash, alleges Opposition Leader

Kerala’s Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan (file)
| Photo Credit: Sreejith R. Kumar

Kerala’s Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan has termed the investigation constituted by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan into the accusations levelled by Left Democratic Front (LDF) independent legislator P.V. Anvar against the Chief Minister’s political secretary P. Sasi and Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Law and Order, M.R. Ajith Kumar as an “eyewash” as both of them continued to serve in their respective posts.

“We had demanded an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the allegations. Instead, the Chief Minister had ordered a probe by permitting those facing serious allegations, including murder and gold smuggling, to continue in their posts. He is afraid of this racket within his office alleged to be involved in such illegal acts,” said Mr. Satheesan here on Tuesday (September 3, 2024).

Mr. Satheesan said the Chief Minister is “afraid” whether the accused will divulge something [against him].

“Why is he and his office so obsessed with gold?,” he asked referring to Mr. Anvar’s allegation that plainclothes squads under Mr. Kumar’s direct control regularly ambushed gold smugglers with the ‘tacit connivance’ of Customs officials, away from the airport cameras, to share spoils secretly.

The office of the Chief Minister in the first term of the Pinarayi Vijayan rule had also come under the scanner for its links in the gold smuggling case in which then Principal Secretary M. Sivasankar was arrested, he said.

Mr. Satheesan asked whether the Chief Minister will take action against Mr. Anvar if his allegations are false. “Communist Party of India (Marxist) in Kerala is going through its worst phase ever as it is embroiled in such serious allegations. Its current situation is similar to the fall of the party unit in West Bengal,” he said.

Mr. Satheesan also alleged that the accused in the murder of CPI(M) dissident and Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP) founder T.P. Chandrasekharan were controlling the gold smuggling and related criminal activities in the Malabar area from within the jail.

“They are operating with the tacit support of the CPI(M), which fears that the truth behind the murder will be revealed once they are antagonised,” he said.

On whether the Congress party will welcome Mr. Anvar if he ended his association with the CPI(M), Mr. Satheesan said it was up to the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) to respond to the query. “But I do not think Mr. Anvar has any such intention,” he said.

He also alleged that there was a conspiracy to disrupt the Thrissur Pooram to favour the the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. “The Chief Minister was aware of the move, but he remained silent as part of an unholy nexus between his party and the BJP,” he alleged.