Thiruvananthapuram: The CPM state leadership has reached an understanding not to further aggravate the controversy surrounding the vigilance raid of KSFE.
It is learnt that senior leaders, who held informal discussions over phone, decided to put an end to the controversy with a detailed statement of the chief minister, explaining the circumstances that led to the action. On Monday evening, Pinarayi Vijayan described the raid as a routine exercise by the Vigilance & Anti-Corruption Bureau. While defending the bureau, which is under his jurisdiction, CM has also been cautious not to disown critics in his party, including finance minister T M Thomas Isaac.
According to sources, the CM’s office was informed in advance about the raid and neither CM nor CMO officials red-flagged it. Officials considered the action to be on the lines of previous routine raids, including on police stations and border check posts. “The raid was planned much ahead of the notification of local-body polls and even before the ED investigation into government projects. It was only natural the raid would have been perceived as normal then,” a source said.
As the controversy over the raid raged, the CM conveyed the full picture to senior leaders, including Isaac. Sources said Vijayan assured them of amicably settling the issue as the raid, prima facie, hadn’t identified any major irregularity. Isaac, who minced no words in attacking the vigilance on Saturday and Sunday, told reporters on Monday he wouldn’t want to prolong the controversy.
However, the clarification made by Vijayan has put Isaac on the defensive as he would now have to explain the logic behind saying the raid could only have been ordered by someone with ‘poor mental acuity’. With CM making it clear that the raid followed all protocols and even hinted at initial reports suggesting all is not well with KSFE, Isaac will now have to put the house in order first before criticizing vigilance.
On Monday, KSFE conducted an internal audit at all 36 branches which were raided by vigilance. As per initial reports, no major anomalies were unearthed in the action.
The episode has also triggered a debate within CPM over the functioning of home department under the CM. Despite several controversies, such as Maoist encounter killings, UAPA arrest of college students, proposal to create metropolitan police commissionerates in Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram, the CPM and the LDF hadn’t debated them as Vijayan wouldn’t welcome their critical examination. With the experience from the amendment to the Kerala Police Act and the raids that followed, CPM will now put in place a more stringent surveillance on the functioning of police and vigilance. A section of leaders also found fault with police adviser Raman Srivastava whose involvement in the commissionerate and police act amendment incidents was clear. The full meeting of CPM state secretariat, scheduled to be held after local-body elections, will be discussing these issues, said sources.