Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 11 (PTI) The BJP will intensify its protests inside and outside the Keralam Assembly, demanding the resignation of Chief Minister VD Satheesan and Leader of the Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan over the alleged CMRL payments case, party state general secretary S Suresh said on Sunday.
The Keralam Assembly session will commence on Monday.
Addressing a press conference here, Suresh said the Kerala High Court’s recent order directing the registration of a case against Vijayan and family based on an Enforcement Directorate (ED) report was a “simultaneous blow” to both leaders.
The High Court on Friday directed the state government to register a case based on an ED report submitted to the state police, alleging the involvement of Vijayan, his daughter Veena T and son-in-law PA Muhammad Riyas, an MLA, in payments made by Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL).
The ED sought registration of a case based on evidence gathered during its probe and searches under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The agency alleges that CMRL made fraudulent payments of Rs 2.78 crore to Veena’s now-defunct company, Exalogic Solutions, under the guise of IT consultancy services.
“This order from the High Court is a simultaneous blow to the cheeks of both VD Satheesan and Pinarayi Vijayan,” Suresh said.
He alleged that the court order stripped both leaders of their moral authority to continue in their respective positions.
“Morally, neither of them is qualified to sit in that chair,” he said, accusing Satheesan of protecting Vijayan and alleging that the latter received monthly payments for his daughter from CMRL.
The BJP would launch a strong protest campaign in the coming days, Suresh said, adding that the party’s three MLAs would lead its fight inside the Assembly.
“We will wage a very strong battle inside the Assembly. At the same time, outside the Assembly, on the streets of Keralam, we will see major protests,” he said.
The BJP has planned a march to the Assembly on Monday, October 12, with the slogan “Illegal Chief Minister, resign!”, Suresh said.
“If the SIR of the electoral roll is illegal, VD Satheesan is also illegal; that is our one-word slogan,” he said, referring to the protest by the INDIA bloc against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The UDF government came to power after SIR was held in Keralam, he said.
The march would be addressed by BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar and MLAs V Muraleedharan and VV Gopakumar, Suresh said.
He also accused the previous Pinarayi Vijayan-led government and the current Satheesan-led government of targeting Thiruvananthapuram Corporation councillor R Sugadhan through the alleged misuse of the Kerala Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act (KAAPA).
“R Sugadhan is a victim of state-sponsored terrorism jointly carried out in Keralam by VD Satheesan and Pinarayi Vijayan,” Suresh alleged.
He said that the BJP will organise a protest on October 13 against the KAAPA case against Sugadhan and the forgery case registered against the Thiruvananthapuram Mayor, VV Rajesh.
The BJP would hold protest meetings at district headquarters on October 14 and organise a youth march to the Assembly on October 16 against alleged corruption in Public Service Commission appointments to government service, Suresh said.
He added that from October 15 to 31, there will be public meetings across Keralam against the misgovernance of the state government. PTI TBA TBA ROH
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