New Delhi/Thiruvananthapuram, Jun 29 (PTI) Kerala Local Self Government Minister K M Shaji on Monday said the appointment of N Seshadrinathan as the State Election Commissioner was a collective decision of the state Cabinet, amid criticism from within the Congress over the selection.
Seshadrinathan, a retired district judge, was recommended by the state government to the Kerala Governor for appointment as the State Election Commissioner.
However, KPCC General Secretary P M Niyas recently wrote to the Congress leadership alleging that Seshadrinathan had been associated with the CPI(M)’s student wing SFI during his college days and had later supported the Sangh Parivar.
Speaking to reporters, Shaji said the appointment was not an individual’s decision.
“It was a collective decision of the Cabinet. It was taken after detailed deliberations in our Cabinet,” he said.
Shaji said he had already clarified his stand on the issue.
“If you want anything further, you may ask the Chief Minister. There is nothing more for me to add, alter or retract from what I have already said,” he added.
Referring to Niyas’ criticism, Shaji said he had recently met the Congress leader, who did not raise the issue with him.
“I have no particular disagreement with him. In fact, I spoke to him yesterday,” he said.
The minister also criticised attempts to communalise the debate surrounding the appointment.
“We are living in a time when a person’s name, beard, cap or religious identity are being used to judge them. For the past one-and-a-half months, I have been branded as an RSS man. Before that, I was labelled an extremist Muslim and a communal figure,” he said.
Defending Seshadrinathan, Shaji said the focus should be on his professional credentials.
“He has been a lawyer and a judge. If there are concerns, examine the cases he argued as a lawyer or the judgments he delivered as a judge. That is how a person should be evaluated,” he said. PTI TBA TBA ROH
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