Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 17 (IANS) Can former Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan emerge from a barrage of investigations with his political reputation intact, as Oommen Chandy did when the tables turned on the Left in 2016?
That is the question hanging over Kerala politics as Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan opens several fronts against the previous government. In Kerala, a change of government almost invariably brings a change of investigative priorities.
The new dispensation examines the decisions of its predecessor, revisits old allegations and promises accountability. But the political dividends of such probes are not always guaranteed.
When Vijayan took office in May 2016, his government ordered a review of controversial decisions taken by the outgoing Oommen Chandy government from January that year.
The move raised expectations of major revelations against the Congress-led United Democratic Front. Yet the scrutiny did not deliver the sweeping political gains the Left had anticipated, and several allegations failed to produce the decisive outcomes expected by its leaders.
Satheesan now faces a similar test, with investigations announced into the Messi event controversy, alleged irregularities in PSC appointments and the soon-to-be-announced probe into the functioning of the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB).
The government has also suspended police officers, including an ADGP, over alleged excesses against Youth Congress workers, signalling that accountability will extend beyond financial and administrative decisions.
The KIIFB inquiry could prove particularly consequential. Satheesan has alleged that the institution operated beyond normal government and Finance Department controls.
The government must now establish whether the reported irregularities warrant further action, rather than allowing the issue to remain another political accusation.
For Vijayan, however, the CMRL-Exalogic case involving his daughter, T. Veena, presents a more immediate challenge. The case originated with the ED, not the Satheesan government.
Following a High Court directive, the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau registered cases naming Vijayan, Veena and former minister P.A. Mohammed Riyas.
The ED has now summoned Vijayan for questioning on Friday, October 23.
All allegations remain subject to investigation and legal proceedings. The political irony is hard to miss.
The government that once promised to expose its predecessor must now defend its own probes against charges of political vendetta, while the former ruler faces scrutiny from multiple directions.
For Satheesan, the challenge is to produce credible findings. For Vijayan, it is to withstand them.
In Kerala’s revolving door politics, launching an investigation is easy; making it stick is the real test.
Whether Vijayan gets an Oommen Chandy-style escape from the political fallout remains an open question.
–IANS
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