Is Satheesan government soft on Pinarayi Vijayan? Question swirls amid Congress disquiet

There seems to be resentment in a section of the ruling Congress in Kerala over the state government’s “kid glove” approach towards state CPI(M) stalwart and ex-chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who is facing a vigilance probe in the alleged payoff case involving his daughter Veena’s IT firm.

This discontent, voiced by several young Congress leaders and senior party functionaries, centres on the state Home Department’s delay in ordering a vigilance probe against Vijayan, his family members and others in the wake of an Enforcement Directorate (ED) report last month.

The ED report wanted the state Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) to initiate proceedings against Vijayan and others under relevant provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act in connection with alleged illegal payments received by Veena’s firm Exalogic Solutions from Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) when Vijayan was the CM. Instead of registering an FIR in this connection, the V D Satheesan government opted for a preliminary inquiry by the Crime Branch.

The VACB was however forced to register an FIR against Vijayan and others last week following an order of the Kerala High Court. The court, after finding that the ED report contained sufficient material to proceed, set aside the preliminary inquiry.

The Satheesan government’s handling of the case has become a point of discord within the Congress, which has been an arch rival of the CPI(M) in Kerala, even as the two parties are constituents of the Opposition INDIA bloc at the national level. The BJP leadership, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has often used this apparent contradiction to accuse the Congress and the CPI(M) of “kushti (wrestling) in Kerala, dosti (friendship) in Delhi”.

The Congress-led UDF government, represented by the Advocate General, had in the high court opposed a petition seeking registration of an FIR against Vijayan and others. It had defended the preliminary inquiry and questioned the petitioner’s intentions.

The Law Department is headed by Chief Minister Satheesan, while the VACB comes under Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala. The decision to conduct a preliminary inquiry before registering an FIR was taken by the two leaders after consultations.

After a High Court division bench upheld the single bench’s order, offering little relief to Vijayan, a section of Congress leaders openly questioned the government’s approach.

The Congress’s two-term MLA Mathew Kuzhalnadan, who had led a campaign against Vijayan over the alleged payoff scandal, said the party should not forget its political struggles against the CPI(M). “We must never forget the political journey we have travelled and the struggles we have endured along the way while fighting the CPI(M),” he said.

Some Congress leaders have also recalled how Vijayan, as the CM, had handled allegations against Congress leaders. Some of them cited on social media the previous CPI(M)-led LDF government’s decision to order a probe against Congress stalwart and ex-CM Oommen Chandy following allegations made by a woman accused in the solar scam.

“Vijayan had thrown Chandy before the CBI after collecting a piece of paper from the accused woman. He does not deserve any leniency,” a Congress leader said.

Another young Congress MLA, C R Mahesh, expressed his discontent in a Facebook post, asking, “Should we forget the past?”

Senior Congress leader and MP K Sudhakaran, who built his political career fighting the CPI(M) in its stronghold of Kannur, also backed Kuzhalnadan. “He is not alone, and we will all support him. If there is a government with a backbone, there will be action. I don’t know whether such a government exists. Let’s see how the government acts and to what extent it will go,” Sudhakaran said.

With the controversy threatening to embarrass the government and the party, Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president and minister Sunny Joseph on Monday defended the government’s decision, describing it as “considerate, mature and practical”.

“The government’s decision has put the CPI(M) in a fix. All leaders are bound to accept the decisions of the government as well as the party. Everyone should desist from making public statements. The law will take its own course. We are not afraid of anyone. The government has acted on legal advice and has not tried to hush up the case,” Joseph said.