THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala stated that the chief minister’s response in the press meets reveals his worries over Sprinklr data scam where his actions were similar to the uproar caused in the SNC Lavalin case. He blamed Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for sending IT Secretary M Sivasankar to meet CPI secretary Kanam Rajendran late on Wednesday to explain about the Sprinklr deal. Chennithala told media persons here on Thursday that it is the CM who is ensuring that the officials lose their morale.
He said the ghost of SNC Lavalin is still haunting Pinarayi. Chennithala said there is no political conspiracy in the Sprinklr deal when in reality the IT secretary himself had agreed to the allegations raised by the Opposition, in his interview to various television channels. He also alleged that Pinarayi is still not commenting on the allegations he had raised since April 10. On Wednesday, the CM had alleged that the Opposition had criticised the two-member expert committee constituted to probe the Sprinklr deal.
Chennithala said the action of a bureaucrat to meet a party secretary at his office is rather unheard of.
He said the decision to appoint a committee to probe the deal reveals that the CM has changed his earlier stand thereby admitting his mistake.
“The CM sounds desperate and he is trying to portray him as a martyr by highlighting the factionalism in the party. It was the CPM which resorted to factionalism,” said Chennithala. He added that CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury, Politburo member S Ramachandran Pillai or CPM secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan have not supported the LDF government’s deal with American company Sprinklr.