THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan yesterday said the governor’s nod to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to prosecute party leader Pinarayi Vijayan in the Rs.3 billion SNC Lavalin scam was “not surprising.”
This comes as a departure from his party stance on the issue. When asked about his opinion on Gov. R.S. Gavai’s decision, Achuthanandan said: “Don’t you know that there have been several instances in the past where governors have taken such a stand.”
“The governor’s decision is not surprising,” the chief minister told reporters after a Cabinet meeting here. He clarified that no discussions were held on the issue at the Cabinet meet.
“It was decided that all the ministers should get time to study the issue and we have decided to take this up at the next cabinet meeting,” Achuthanandan said.
Gavai had Sunday called the head of the CBI office here to his residence and handed over a 148-page report, giving his sanction to prosecute Vijayan. Vijayan is accused of wrongfully awarding a contract to SNC Lavalin for renovation of two power plants when he was the state power minister in 1997.
This is the first time a CPI(M) Politburo member has been accused in a multimillion rupee scam and will face prosecution.
Achuthanandan’s remarks contradict the stand taken by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) that has termed the governor’s decision as “unfortunate” and said it would fight the case “both politically and legally.”
In fact, state Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan had Tuesday termed Gavai’s decision as “arbitrary” and flouting the basic rules of democracy.
Vijayan and Achuthanandan are known rivals and their relationship has been going from bad to worse ever since the latter was given the nod to contest assembly polls in 2006, after first being denied a seat. He then took over the reins of the LDF government.
