Express News Service
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The revelation by former Kerala Congress (Balakrishna Pillai) general secretary C Manoj Kumar aka Saranya Manoj that it was K B Ganesh Kumar, MLA, who was the master brain behind the solar scam has created ripples within the UDF now. Though this was already known to the UDF leadership, the latest revelation has let them heave a sigh of relief, especially those leaders belonging to the ‘A’ group who had come under a cloud of smoke. Now former chief minister Oommen Chandy’s stand not to take back KC (B) into the UDF fold stands vindicated.
When the Solar scam had snowballed into a major controversy during the previous UDF Government’s tenure in 2013, the most affected was the ‘A’ group led by Oommen Chandy. The other ‘A’ group stalwarts who had come under the scanner included Benny Behanan, Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, Kodikunnil Suresh, Thampanoor Ravi and P C Vishnunath. However, the ‘I’ group did not face the same heat unlike the ‘A’ group as only two leaders from their camp, A P Anil Kumar and Hibi Eden were affected.
The sensational case later became instrumental in the UDF government losing power. Oommen Chandy and other top Congress leaders were accused of accepting bribes as part of the deals with Saritha S Nair and Biju Radhakrishnan. Right from day one, Oommen Chandy and his camp were claiming that the victim in the Solar case during her stint at the Attakulangara sub-jail had initially written only a two-and-a-half pages statement.
“But what happened later on was that the written statement went on to become 23 pages. It was evident that there was conspiracy within the UDF and the Congress to sabotage the chances of Oommen Chandy returning to power again. Ganesh Kumar made the Solar case victim come up with oral statements as per the 23 pages forged written statement. Now things are falling into its place like a jigsaw puzzle”, said Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan.
But at the same time the ‘A’ camp feels that Oommen Chandy showed the dignity of not revealing what the victim’s partner, Biju Radhakrishnan told about the unholy nexus between her and Ganesh Kumar. When Ganesh Kumar moved to the LDF camp he hoped of getting a ministerial berth for himself when already his father, R Balakrishna Pillai was given the chairman post of Kerala State Backward Classes Commission on a cabinet rank. But when that didn’t work out, he allegedly approached Opposition Leader Ramesh Chennithala who was keen on bringing smaller parties under the UDF umbrella. With the then UDF leadership led by Benny Behanan as well as Oommen Chandy expressed their strong displeasure against it, Ganesh Kumar’s plans fell like a pack of cards.
Hassanspeak
“Now after four-and-a-half years, in a planned move the LDF Government has dusted the bar scam and came up with allegations against Ramesh Chennithala. They wouldn’t prefer to bring another case against Oommen Chandy, lest it goes haywire as the LDF would not prefer to convey to public that they have stage-managed it at a time when the state is going to face the LSG polls,” UDF convener M M Hassan told TNIE.