Solar Scam: Kerala Assembly special session on Nov 9

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday headed a cabinet meeting that decided to call a special one-day Assembly session on November 9 to table the Solar Scam probe report.

Cases were set to be registered against several Congress leaders including former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on the basis of the Solar Judicial Commission report.

The cabinet recommended the Governor to call a special session, Vijayan said in his Facebook post.

According to rules, once a judicial commission report is received, the government can either accept or reject it. In case it accepts the report, along with the action taken report, it has to be tabled in the Assembly, within six months.

On October 11, the government decided to proceed with the Justice G. Sivarajan Commission report in the solar scam and gave the nod to register criminal, vigilance and sexual harassment cases against Chandy, his cabinet colleagues, a former Union Minister, legislators and other Congress leaders.

The multi-crore solar energy investment fraud, which rocked the Chandy government in 2013, was led by Saritha Nair and her live-in partner. At its height, Nair had in a letter claimed that she was sexually exploited by numerous political leaders.

Chandy and the UDF have been demanding a copy of the report.

However, the Chief Minister ruled it out and said the report would be tabled in the Assembly at the appropriate time.

Vijayan, last week constituted a new special investigation team (SIT) led by Director General of Police Rajesh Diwan to investigate the cases mentioned.

Apart from Chandy, the others named in the report include former cabinet Ministers Aryadan Mohammed (now ex-MLA), Adoor Prakash, A.P. Anil Kumar, Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan (all are present legislators), legislator Hibi Eden, former legislators Benny Behanan, P.C. Vishnunath and Thampanoor Ravi, Lok Sabha members Jose K. Mani, former Union Ministers K.C. Venugopal, Palanimanickam and party office bearer N. Subramanion.

Except for Mani of the Kerala Congress (M), all others are Congress leaders.

The Commission report also indicted that the then solar probe panel led by now Director General of Police A. Hemachandran and his team did not conduct an effective probe and instead tried to save Chandy and others.

Based on these findings, Vijayan ordered that Hemachandran his deputy and then Inspector General of Police K. Padmakumar and eight other police officials should also be probed.

Hemachandran has already written to Vijayan that he has done no wrong but takes full responsibility and is prepared to face the probe but the other team members should not be proceeded against.

On Thursday, Padmakumar told reporters that he has written to the government that he has done no wrong and it was he who first arrested Nair in 2013.

"Till I gave the orders for the arrest of Saritha Nair, none knew that there was such a case. It was only after that arrest took place that the solar scam surfaced. I have done my duty and I have done no wrong," said Padmakumar.

The government order announcing the new probe has not come yet.

Vijayan has now sought expert opinion from former Supreme Court judge Justice Arijit Pasayat.

--IANS

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