Keralam CM denies CPI(M) accusation that govt. has ceded executive power to 'RSS-controlled' Lok Bhavan
UDF government has strongly protested the Governor’s summoning of the State Police Chief without informing or seeking the government’s consent. It is not the first time Lok Bhavan has summoned department heads without the government’s approval. It has happened several times during the LDF dispensation, says V.D. Satheesan
Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan firmly refuted the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) claim that the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) government had relinquished executive power to the “Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh” (RSS)-controlled Governor Rajendra Viswanath Arlekar. Satheesan emphasized that the government had strongly protested the Governor's summoning of the State Police Chief without prior consent, an incident that had also occurred multiple times under the previous Left Democratic Front (LDF) administration.
He pointed out that the absence of the Union Minister for Ports and Shipping from the Vizhinjam international seaport's commencement of export and import operations was due to urgent official matters, not as a consequence of the UDF's decision not to sing Vande Mataram fully during Independence Day celebrations. Satheesan declined to comment on whether Leader of the Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan had missed the Vizhinjam event due to political disagreements, stating that Vijayan and the CPI(M) are the best candidates to address that query.
He announced that the government would soon establish the scope of the investigation into the GST department's assertion that a company, which promised to sponsor the Argentine football team and Lionel Messi's visit to Kerala in 2025, had defrauded the exchequer of ₹22 crore in service tax on foreign remittances. Satheesan categorically denied that the Jamaat-e-Islami and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) held any real influence over the UDF government, stating that the UDF government is not subservient to any religious or caste organization.
Finally, he dismissed accusations from CPI(M) State secretary M.V. Govindan that the arrest of his "close confidante" and Youth Congress leader Muhammad Hussien on false drug charges had hindered Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala’s anti-narcotic campaign, Operation Toofan, asserting that his long-standing interactions with individuals of diverse political backgrounds and orientations do not imply any involvement in criminal activity.
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