THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The solar scandal, which took Kerala by storm four years ago, has come back with a vengeance leaving many heads rolling in its wake. Senior Congress leader and former chief minister Oommen Chandy—one of the most powerful politicians in the state—bore the primary brunt of a fiasco that smacks of corruption, muscle power and sleaze in equal measure.
What makes the solar scandal startling for Keralites is the way it has unravelled itself over the years. With its heady mixture of power politics, bribery and sex, the scandal has at its epicentre Saritha S Nair, who is the prime accused and the one who revels in dropping sensational newsy titbits at regular intervals.
Last week, even as the voting for the Vengara bypoll was on, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in a masterstroke virtually dropped a bombshell into the Opposition UDF camp. Based on the findings of the Judicial Commission appointed by the previous UDF government to probe the solar scam, the Left government ordered Vigilance and SIT investigations against a slew of senior Congress leaders including Chandy, Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan and Aryadan Mohammed.
In a major blow to the UDF—especially the Congress that leads the skeleton coalition—the state government slapped rape and sexual harassment charges against all those who have found a mention in Saritha Nair’s controversial letter —Aryadan, Adoor Prakash, AP Anil Kumar, KC Venugopal and Hibi Eden including Oommen Chandy. This sudden turn of events have put the entire UDF on the defence.
Tasting blood, an energised Left front has been very vociferous in its demand for Chandy and Co to quit public offices with immediate effect. While nonagenarian left leader VS Achuthanandan wants Chandy and others to quit all elected posts and apologise to the public, CPI(M) state chief Kodiyeri Balakrishnan has asked Congress leaders to stay away from politics en masse.In a way, the solar commission findings and the subsequent investigations ordered could well be termed as a political victory for the chief minister. With one single stroke, the CPI(M) strongman was able to shoot down party boss Sitaram Yechury’s hopes of forging an alliance with the Congress, at least for the time being.
Clearly on the backfoot, the state Congress has already launched its counter offensive urging the government to make the solar report public. Sporting a brave face, Chandy has stated that he would quit his public life, if even one hundredth of the allegations were proved true. Congress veteran AK Antony and Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala have already come out accusing Vijayan for resorting to a cheap political trick to gain short-term political mileage.
A day after, the Congress went on to move a breach-of-privilege motion against Vijayan before the speaker of the state Legislative Assembly. Chandy also filed an RTI application before the chief secretary seeking a copy of the solar panel report. Intervening in the issue, the Congress High Command called senior leaders to Delhi last week to discuss the future course of action.
Whether the BJP—which is currently on a Janaraksha Yatra in the state—will seize the opportunity to corner the Opposition UDF in the state is yet to be seen.
Findings of the Solar Commission
What is the Scam?
The multi-crore scandal pertains to cheating of investors wherein the accused Saritha S Nair and Biju Radhakrishnan of Team Solar allegedly duped customers of Rs 7 crore with their offers of solar panels. What began as a simple cheating case made the headlines after allegations surfaced against the Chief Minister’s Office. Oommen Chandy’s personal staff Tenny Joppen, Jikkumon Joseph, gunman Salim Raj and New Delhi-based friend Abraham Kuruvilla had all come under the scanner.