Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday said the botched conduct of Thrissur’s iconic Pooram festival was “deliberate and pre-planned” with an eye on the Lok Sabha elections held days after the festival. He also ordered a three-level probe into allegations of sabotage of the event.
Addressing the media, Vijayan said there was a lapse on the part of ADGP (law and order) M R Ajith Kumar, who is in the thick of a controversy over meeting RSS general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale last year. He, however, said the ADGP would not be removed from the post just yet.
The remarks come days after Kumar ruled out any sabotage in a report submitted to the state DGP.
Held at Thrissur’s Vadakkunnathan Temple around April each year, the festival attracts lakhs of devotees. This year, processions undertaken by the temple administrations encountered police restrictions, triggering controversy.
“Kumar’s report is not comprehensive. The state police chief will probe into the lapse on the part of Kumar, but he will not be removed from the post,” the CM said. Significantly, the ADGP’s removal is a demand consistently raised by CPI, a leading partner of ruling LDF.
On the demand of CPI and Opposition that Kumar be shunted out from the key post, Vijayan said: “There is no question of protecting the ADGP. When an official has to be removed from a post over an issue, there should be a report in that regard. A person cannot be removed from a post based on an allegation. Based on the DGP’s proposed probe report, I will make my stand clear on ADGP’s meeting with RSS leaders”.
Referring to the police report on the attempt to spoil the pooram, Vijayan said: “There was a clear plan to shatter the social atmosphere in the state. There was a concerted attempt. The report has pointed out there were attempts to make illegal demands and create trouble when such demands were not met. Attempts to destroy the state’s social atmosphere cannot be allowed”.
The chief minister also announced a three-level probe into the botched-up conduct of the pooram. The state police chief will probe into the lapse on the part of ADGP Kumar while another probe will be conducted by ADGP (crimes) H Venkatesh into the crimes which had figured in the police report.
A third probe headed by ADGP (intelligence) Manoj Abraham will look into the lapses on the part of officials of various departments, who were on duty in connection with the pooram, the CM said.
Soon after a controversy erupted over the Pooram event, the government had ordered a probe by Kumar. But it was only in the last week of September that Kumar submitted the report to the state police chief.
The Opposition Congress-led UDF has alleged that the ADGP’s meeting with RSS leaders like Hosable, held last year, had led to police “disrupting” the annual Pooram festival. This, they claim, in turn “contributed” to BJP candidate Suresh Gopi’s win from the Thrissur seat in the Lok Sabha polls.
Significantly, CPI as well the formerly CPI (M)-backed Independent legislator P.V. Anvar echoed the Congress’s allegations.
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