THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Justifying Sriram Venkataraman’s appointment as Alappuzha District Collector as a routine posting, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan reiterated the government’s ‘uncompromising stand’ in the case relating to the death of journalist KM Basheer in a drunk driving-related road accident involving the IAS officer in 2019.
“As a government servant, there are responsibilities that need to be undertaken at various stages,” Pinarayi said, justifying the posting. In the Basheer case, there has been no compromise on the part of the government, he maintained. The government had adopted a stern stance in the case and it will continue, he assured.
The chief minister also criticised his former cabinet colleague KT Jaleel who had reportedly written a letter to the UAE government seeking a ban on Malayalam daily ‘Madhyamam’ in the Gulf country. “In case such a letter was written, it should not have been done,” Pinarayi said in response to a query.“I have not spoken to Jaleel. I came to know of the matter from media reports,” Pinarayi added.
Asked about the KPCC’s recently held Chintan Shivir in Kozhikode, Pinarayi said the Congress, which cannot stand on its own feet, is now attempting to woo parties from other fronts.