THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:Taking strong exception to Forest Minister K Raju’s untimely German trip while the state was battling floods on multiple fronts, the CPI on Tuesday publicly censured the minister. The state executive decision is seen as a face-saving measure for the CPI which had drawn considerable flak over the incident.
A fall-out of the incident is that the CPI has decided not to permit its ministers to go on foreign jaunts unless they were for official purposes.Raju’s decision to travel to Germany while the state was in the throes of a devastating natural calamity was wrong, CPI state secretary Kanam Rajendran said, announcing the executive’s decision. The state executive, which deemed the trip ‘inappropriate,’ passed sentence on the minister after examining the written explanation he submitted on his return. The CPI leadership also had expressed its displeasure in the incident.
Kanam Rajendran pointed out that the minister had obtained all the mandatory permissions - from the party, the Chief Minister and the Ministry of External Affairs - before attending the World Malayali Federation event in Germany. ‘’But all that was before the crisis hit the state. Going at such a time - on the morning of August 16 - was highly inappropriate. The thought should have occurred to him,’’ Rajendran said.The party has also decided that its ministers need not go on foreign trips unless they were of an official nature.
What is it?
‘Public censure’ is one of six disciplinary actions in the CPI’s penal repertoire. The first is ‘warning.’ Increasing in degrees, next comes ‘censure’ followed by ‘public censure,’ ‘suspension from party factions, suspension from the party itself, and finally, ‘expulsion from the party.