THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) have squared up for a full -fledged political faceoff over a fire at the State Secretariat.
Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala and BJP State president K Surendran have accused Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan of stage managing a fire at the Secretariat with the express objective of destroying files relating to the gold smuggling case.
It was a well-orchestrated attempt to destroy crucial evidence on the gold smuggling case, they alleged.
Incidentally, the fire occurred at the protocol section of the Secretariat,, where important files on gold smuggling are kept. Significantly the opposition leaders alleged the fire occurred a few days after the protocol section was closed when a few persons there tested covid positive. Under the cover of covid pandemic the Government also removed important files from the Secretariat, they further alleged.
The Government has, of course, denied the charges. Not a single file has been destroyed, and all the important files are safe on the racks. Moreover as the e-filing system has been introduced at the Secretariat all the files are safe. Even if some files are destroyed they can be retrieved, ruling party circles have claimed.
The Government has ordered a probe into the fire incident. But, opposition leaders say nothing will come out of it. Only a probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) can bring out the truth, they feel
The Opposition parties have decided to launch a statewide protest against the attempts to destroy evidence in the gold smuggling case. The coming days will, therefore see an escalation in political tensions.
Meanwhile, the Government suffered a setback when the High Court rejected its petition seeking a stay on the transfer of the Thiruvananthapuram airport to the Adani group.
Earlier, the Kerala Assembly passed a unanimous resolution opposing the move to hand over the Thiruvananthapuram airport to the Adanis. Even the lone BJP MLA O.Rajagopal did not oppose the resolution. (IPA Service)
Congress, BJP In A Major Confrontation In By-Polls For 27 Seats In M.P. 