T’PURAM/KOTTAYAM : Switching to damage-control mode, the government has announced an investigation by a team headed by the state police chief into the allegations raised by ruling front MLA P V Anvar against ADGP M R Ajith Kumar. In an unusual move, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan announced the investigation while addressing the Kerala Police Association state conference in Kottayam on Monday.
Nearly 10 hours after the CM’s announcement, the government constituted a five-member high-level team led by State Police Chief Shaik Darvesh Saheb to probe the allegations against the Law and Order ADGP and other senior police officials, including Pathanamthitta SP Sujith Das. The other members of the team are IG G Sparjan Kumar, Thrissur Range DIG Thomson Jose, Thiruvananthapuram Crime Branch SP S Madhusoodanan and State Intelligence S P A Shanawaz.
The team has been directed to conduct an inquiry and file a report within a month. Notably, no decision has been taken to remove the CM’s political secretary and the law and order ADGP from their respective positions. Contrary to speculations, Ajith Kumar will continue in the same post during the SIT investigation against him. Similarly, the government decided not to suspend Sujith Das from service. Instead, he has been removed as Pathanamthitta SP. No posting has been given and he has been asked to report to the state police chief.
The state government was forced to announce investigation after Anvar raised serious charges against the ADGP in addition to CM’s political secretary P Sasi and Sujith Das. Dropping a bomb shell, he alleged that Ajith Kumar was a notorious criminal having links to syndicates engaged in illicit activities, including gold smuggling. To buttress his claim, Anvar produced the audio tape of his telephonic conversation with Sujith Das.
Anvar continued the tirade on Monday raising serious allegations about the palatial building being constructed by the ADGP in Thiruvananthapuram. He questioned the role of Ajith Kumar in the investigation into the solar case. He charged Ajith Kumar with running a spy racket in Dubai to collect information about rivals involved in gold smuggling and later get them arrested to protect the monopoly of his racket. He also pointed fingers at the local police headed by the ADGP for the murder of a youth.
CM cautions officers against straying from discipline path
Opposition UDF and the BJP have already trained guns on the chief minister, demanding that Pinarayi should step down. While Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan demanded a CBI investigation into the allegations, BJP state chief K Surendran said the government has lost the moral right to continue in office.
Earlier in the day, Pinarayi said some issues have come to light in the public recently. “It has been decided that these issues will be thoroughly investigated by a top ranking officer. Discipline is of utmost importance, and any violations will not be tolerated. Action in this regard will be taken accordingly,” the CM said. He cautioned officers against straying from the principles of police discipline. “The public still holds strong faith in the ability of the police to deliver justice. However, a small faction within the force resists necessary changes. Actions of these individuals can tarnish the reputation of the entire force,” he said.