Opposition UDF, BJP demand Pinarayi’s resignation over Swapna’s ‘revelations’
Opposition UDF, BJP demand Pinarayi’s resignation over Swapna’s ‘revelations’
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has perceived a political plot to discredit the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government.
Mr. Vijayan said here on Tuesday that the UAE gold smuggling case suspect who made “false allegations” seemed to be a proxy for vested interests eager to discredit the administration by falsely implicating those at its helm in a high-profile economic offence. The public had categorically rejected the derogatory lies and cherry-picked statements that had fuelled the recriminatory campaign of the Congress and Bharathiya Janata Party (BJP) against the previous LDF government in the run-up to the 2021 Assembly elections.
“It is an exercise in futility. Such canards would not weaken the government’s will or deter its agenda.” The previous government had sought a multi-agency inquiry by the Centre into the crime that transcended international borders. The LDF had nothing to conceal, he said.
On a seemingly personal note, Mr. Vijayan said such low-grade allegations would not deter persons with an unblemished public record from discharging their duties. “I believe society would reject the attempt by certain quarters to reiterate falsehoods to smear persons with public standing,” he said.
Swapna alleged that the UAE consulate had collaborated with the Chief Minister’s Office to smuggle foreign currency out of the country. She also said the embassy had facilitated the import of vessels possibly containing contraband metal to Cliff House, the official residence of the Chief Minister.
Swapna’s contentious averments had sparked a political uproar in the State. The Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have demanded Mr. Vijayan’s resignation in the wake of the “damning” revelations. Youth Congress workers burned Mr. Vijayan in effigy in front of the Secretariat.
Opposition Leader V.D.Satheeshan demanded a court-monitored inquiry. He claimed Swapna’s sworn statement had substantiated the United Democratic Front (UDF) charges against the previous LDF government.
Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president K. Sudhakaran said Swapna’s statement had unravelled the conspiracy hatched by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and BJP to cover up the high-profile economic offence by scapegoating a few outliers.
CPI(M) State secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan and LDF convener E. P. Jayarajan weighed in with support for Mr. Vijayan. They said the allegations smacked a BJP-Congress plot to breathe life into a discredited storyline.
The controversy seemed unlikely to peter out soon, given the Opposition’s resolve to pursue it doggedly.
