Kerala - Alappuzha   

Chennithala flays transfer of Idukki Collector

ALAPPUZHA: Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president Ramesh Chennithala has said that the transfer of Idukki Collector Raju Narayana Swamy to Pathanamthitta shows that Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan and the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government had unconditionally surrendered to the land mafia.

Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, Mr. Chennithala said that though such transfers were an ordinary occurrence, the case of Mr. Narayana Swamy held lot of significance, particularly because he was among those specially chosen to accomplish the LDF’s mission of reclaiming encroached land in Munnar.

“All the three officers hand-picked by the Chief Minister have been shunted out. This shows that the Chief Minister is ready to go to any extent to hang on to power. The transfer of Mr. Narayana Swamy shows that the LDF is completely in the grip of the land mafia. The officer has been removed from Idukki only to make affairs smoother for land-grabbers,” the KPCC chief said.

Earlier, Mr. Chennithala said the United Democratic Front (UDF) would not accept any investigation, whether it was by the Central Bureau of Investigation or a judicial probe, into the Merchiston Estate controversy without the removal of Forests Minister Benoy Viswom from his post.

“Any probe into the issue when the Minister, whose involvement in the shady deal is clear, with him remaining in his seat will hold no significance and will not bring out the truth. The UDF will continue and intensify its agitation demanding the resignation of the Minister,” he said.

While protest marches and public meetings would be held in front of panchayat offices across the State on September 28, a UDF march to all taluk offices would be conducted on October 4. A special meeting of the UDF in Thiruvananthapuram would chalk out the further course of the agitation, Mr. Chennithala added.

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