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THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Officially acknowledging for the first time that there was a concerted effort to disrupt Thrissur Pooram with an objective of disrupting the social fabric of the state, the state government has ordered a three-tier investigation into the matter.
Briefing the media after the cabinet meeting, CM Pinarayi Vijayan said Crime Branch ADGP H Venkatesh will head a special team to probe the offences committed during the Thrissur Pooram with an aim of disrupting it.
Intelligence ADGP Manoj Abraham will probe the alleged lapses made by officials from the various departments, who had assembled during the Pooram.
State Police Chief Shaik Darvesh Saheb himself will probe the lapses of Law and Order ADGP M R Ajith Kumar during the conduct of Pooram.
Meanwhile, the government has decided not to remove ADGP Ajith from the post. CM said the allegations against the officer on Pooram conduct ought to be verified and hence it has been referred to the Police Chief for probe.
The CM said it was during the last stage of Pooram that concerted efforts were made to sabotage Pooram and it was done with an eye on the Lok Sabha poll. The report of ADGP M R Ajith Kumar, who probed into the Pooram fiasco, has many indications suggesting that various demands were made by some Pooram stakeholders, which were legally not possible and efforts were made to precipitate issues over the demands.
The CPM finds itself in a quandary over explaining its position vis-à-vis issues such as the disruption of Thrissur Pooram. At the centre of controversy is also the press conference held by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his mention of the crime rate in Malappuram district.
Though a section in the CPM is unhappy with the way the so-called PR controversy was handled by the Chief Minister’s Office, the party is all set to defend Pinarayi in the wake of an all-out attack against him by the Opposition. According to reports, CPM leader and ex-MLA T K Devakumar’s son Subrahmaniam was the PR personnel present during the CM’s interview. Subrahmaniam is a former SFI leader.
Meanwhile, according to Onmanorama, Kerala Chief Minister on Thursday clarified that Malappuram-related remarks, which was published in The Hindu newsapeper on September 30 was not part of the replies he gave to the media house. He added that he never hired a PR agency for the interview either. The Hindu had claimed that the Malappuram related remarks in its interview with the Chief Minister were suggested by a public relations agency.
(With inputs from Online Desk.)