Thiruvananthapuram: Chief Electoral Officer and Additional Chief Secretary Teeka Ram Meena has rated Pinarayi Vijayan as the best chief minister Kerala state has ever had. He also termed controversial bureaucrat M Sivasankar as an efficient officer.
Meena was speaking to Manorama News in an interview ahead of retiring from service after a long career spanning 35 years.
"In administrative matters Pinarayi gives a lot of freedom to officials. He also has faith in his officers," Meena said while explaining the CM's style.
Former DGP Loknath Behera had hailed the CM as '100 per cent professional'.
Meena, however, expressed his disappointment with AK Antony, who was the CM thrice.
The top bureaucrat who hails from Rajasthan, however, regretted what Sivasankar has been going through of late.
Sivasankar had been suspended for a year and five months for his alleged involvement in the high-profile gold smuggling case that rocked the state during the term of the previous Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government. Sivasankar is the 29th accused as per the Customs chargesheet. The Kerala government reinstated the IAS officer only last month. He was appointed as the new secretary of the Sports and Youth Affairs Department.
