Thiruvananthapuram: The Cabinet decision to scrap the MoU on deep-sea fishing is only the latest in the list of aborted projects and annulled actions of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government in Kerala. A recall of the fate of its misadventures in the last nearly five-year tenure reveals that it was the vehement charges of the alert Opposition that had forced the Pinarayi regime to beat a hasty retreat.
Here are the other 10 issues that embarrassed the state government no end that it capitulated to the Opposition onslaught primarily spearheaded by its leader Ramesh Chennithala.
1. Nepotism row: The appointment of Minister E P Jayarajan’s nephew and CPM central committee member P K Sreemathy's son Sudheer Nambiar as the managing director of Kerala State Industrial Enterprises (KSIE) had triggered a controversy. Soon Jayarajan had to resign and he returned to the State Cabinet only after two years. Minister K T Jaleel's relative was appointed as general manager of Minorities Development Corporation and he too was forced to step down amid the row.
2. Sprinklr data protection and privacy scandal: The chief minister had initially countered opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala's allegations regarding the contract given to US company Sprinklr for analysing Covid-19 data in violation of rules. With the high court intervening in the matter, the clauses for the safety of data were added and Sprinklr software was transferred to C-DIT's cloud account. The expert committee constituted by the government had also submitted a report pointing to grave lapses. Following the controversy, the services of Sprinklr was not availed at all and the contract was also not renewed.
3. Pamba sand-mining deal: Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala had alleged that Kannur-based Kerala Clays and Ceramics Products was given contract for removing sand worth crores of rupees which got deposited in the Pamba River during the 2018 floods. The contract was signed on the pretext of removing waste deposit from the river. The opposition leader alleged that if the government went ahead with the contract it would incur a loss of Rs 10 crore to the state. Though the chief minister and his colleagues countered the allegations initially, later they were forced to back out from the project. CPI's opposition also became decisive. Subsequently, the court ordered a vigilance probe into the entire episode.
4. Brewery sanction muddle: The Opposition leader had alleged that the state government had sanctioned three breweries and one distillery without discussing the matter in the Cabinet and there was corruption worth crores of rupees in the deal. After realising that the issue could create legal problems, the government cancelled the permission.
5. Grace-mark blot: The opposition claimed Higher Education Minister K T Jaleel intervened to grant grace marks to candidates during the adalat organised by the Kerala Technical University. Governor Arif Mohammad Khan, who is also the Chancellor of the University, issued an order stating that the granting of grace marks was against the rules.
6. Retreat from E-mobility project: After the opposition leader had come out in the open against the consultancy contract given to the PricewaterhouseCoopers for the E-Mobility project, the government had to junk it. Earlier the authorities tried to deny that there was a move to give office space to PwC in the Secretariat. However, when the note written by the Transport Secretary regarding this matter came out in the public domain, the government tried to justify saying that the direction was only at the official level.
7. Strange core banking contract: Rs 160 crore contract was given to a company, which does not even have its own software, for establishing corebanking software for cooperative banks. Tenders were also not invited for the project. With the decision triggering a controversy, the contract was scrapped.
8: Review of power bill: The government had initially justified the KSEB decision to levy additional bill from consumers. However, due to protests from the Opposition, CPI and later by the CPM, certain relaxations were announced.
9. Freeze on CIMS project: The Central Intrusion Monitoring System (SIMS) implemented under the aegis of the state police had run into a controversy following a government decision to give the contract to a company named Galaxon. The Opposition raised a hue and cry following which the government had to put the project on hold.
10. Embarrassing Police Act Amendment: The Government was forced to withdraw the amendment made to the Police Act. For the first time in the history of the state, the government had to recommend to the Governor to promulgate a Repealing Ordinance.
