Yet another judicial rap on the knuckles of opposition
By P. Sreekumaran
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Opposition parties in Kerala, the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) once again got it in the neck from the Kerala High Court in the Sabarimala gold theft case.
In a ruling which has come as a big relief to the Left Democratic Front (LDF) Government and which constitutes a big setback to the Opposition, the Kerala High Court has expressed full satisfaction with the ongoing investigation by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) into the Sabarimala gold theft case. The probe, the HC observed, is going in the right direction.
The observations were made by the Court while hearing a plea filed by BJP state president Rajiv Cjhandrasekhar, seeking a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the alleged gold loss. In his petition filed in December last year, Chandrasekhar had submitted that several individuals and establishments across different States were involved in the alleged misappropriation of gold, which could affect the effectiveness of the SIT probe.
A bench of Justices Raja Vijayaraghavan V. and K. V. Jayakumar noted that it had constituted the SIT and initiated the probe, which continued to be under its supervision. It further said that the case was complex and extraordinary in nature, requiring a meticulous examination of procedural and other details, particularly as the SIT was dealing with multiple layers of transactions involving several individuals.
The Opposition parties had made a song and dance about bail being granted to three of the 13 accused in the case. Their contention was that the probe was not going in the right direction.
The court, however, rejected their contention. The granting of statutory bail to the accused after the expiry of the 90-day remand period will not derail the investigation, it observed, adding that the SIT consisted of capable police officers and a CBI probe could not be ordered in every case.
The High Court’s verdict amounts to a categorical rejection of the Opposition parties’ contention that the State Government was putting pressure on the SIT and that the Government was aiding in the release of the accused.
The latest news is that a local court in Kollam has granted statutory bail to Unnikrishnan Potti, prime accused in the case. He has since been released. Potti secured the relief in the second case relating to the incident. Kollam Vigilance Court judge Mohit C. S. granted bail in the case pertaining to the theft of gold from the door frames of the sanctum sanctorum. Bail was granted as the SIT had failed to file a chargesheet within 90 days of his arrest. He had also been granted statutory bail in the case related to the theft of gold from the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idol plates.
The Court has imposed conditions, including execution of a bond with two solvent sureties for Rs 2 lakh each, a directive to the accused not to enter Pathanamthitta district and to refrain from influencing witnesses or tampering with evidence, and an obligation to appear before the investigating officer whenever summoned.
In another directive, the Court extended the remand of senior Tantri (chief priest) Kadararu Rajeevaru, who was produced through videoconferencing. Rajeevaru has filed a bail petition, which will come up for hearing on February 9. The seventh accused in the case, former TDB Thiruvabharanam Commissioner, K. S. Baiju has also sought bail. His bail plea will be considered on February 11.
Meanwhile the gold theft case caused pandemonium in the State Assembly with the Opposition members storming the Speaker’s dais. As the opposition’s protests continued, Speaker A. N. Shamsheer halted the proceedings twice.
Trouble started as soon as the question hour began. The Assembly witnessed uproarious scenes when Opposition MLAs stormed the well of the House and blocked the view of the Speaker by raising banners and placards. They were demanding the resignation of Devaswom Minister V. N. Vasavan in connection with the gold theft case, along with other demands.
Leader of the Opposition V. D. Satheesan announced the protest, which is against the “intervention” by the office of the Chief Minister (CMO) in the SIT investigation in the case. The SIT had been put under pressure, Satheesan added, to protect the Government’s political appointees on the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB).
The Government, however, countered the opposition’s allegation by accusing it of being in alliance with the accused in the case. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, dismissed the allegation by saying that the Division Bench of the High Court, which directly monitors the SIT investigation had lauded the team for its diligence. The Bench’s clean chit to the SIT is a slap on the Opposition’s face, he pointed out. . General Education Minister V. Sivankutty referred to Potti’s alleged “link” with Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, along with other senior Congress leaders. Minister for Local Self-Governments M. B. Rajesh blasted the Opposition, accusing it of insulting even the Chief Justice by making unreasonable allegations against him to score political points. Law Minister P. Rajeeve alleged that the main purpose of the “publicity stunt” by the Opposition was to “sabotage” the case. (IPA Service)
