Left Democratic Front (LDF) independent legislator P.V. Anvar appeared deeply sceptical about the continuation of Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Law and Order, M.R. Ajith Kumar, in office despite Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s forming a special team on Tuesday (September 3, 2024) to investigate the bombshell accusations the ruling front MLA had raised against the ranking officer.
Mr. Anvar on Wednesday (September 4, 2024) also expressed reservations about the composition of the investigation team. When asked how subordinate officers could investigate someone above them in the pecking order, Mr. Anvar replied, “My guess is as good as yours. How can a school peon investigate the headmaster accused of wrongdoing when the latter is in the saddle? I am in no hurry and trust the CM and the CPI(M) to take the correct decision.”
Earlier, Mr. Anvar had likened Mr. Kumar to Dawood Ibrahim, a notorious mob boss. He accused the ranking officer of criminality, corruption, nepotism, and attempts to stoke public resentment against the LDF government. On Tuesday, he also submitted his accusations in writing to Mr. Vijayan at the latter’s office in the Secretariat.
Mr. Anvar said he risked being portrayed as a liar if the special investigation team (SIT) did a dishonest job. Depicting himself as a whistleblower for the government and the CPI(M), Mr. Anvar said he would closely track the investigation and go public if the team veered away from the truth to save those at the apex of law enforcement.
Calls disclosures ‘revolutionary’
He termed his disclosures and subsequent complaints to Mr. Vijayan and Mr. Govindan “revolutionary”. Mr. Anvar claimed he gave voice to lakhs of party workers and the general public who loved the LDF government and wanted it to return to power in the State for a third consecutive time.
“I wanted to expose the public enemies within the LDF government. For days, I switched off my cell phone for weeks to prevent anyone from dissuading me from my path”, he said.
Mr. Anvar denied he climbed down after meeting Mr. Vijayan. “I am hard on the heels of the wrongdoers. Some in the media depicted me as a rat. A rodent is not an unsavoury animal. It ferrets out the truth from dark places. There should be a rat in every home”, he added.
Charges against P. Sasi
Mr. Anvar had also accused Mr. Vijayan’s political secretary P. Sasi of ignoring red flags and cautionary reports that should have alerted the government to the alleged wrongdoings of those at the apex of law enforcement.
Mr. Anvar said Mr. Sasi was a political appointee. “Whatever I told the Chief Minister, I have reported to Mr. Govindan. The CPI(M) will course correct as always”, he added.
Mr. Anvar reiterated that the political watchdogs in the Chief Minister’s office had “betrayed” the government and party. “The Chief Minister was kept in the dark. He trusted people who betrayed his confidence,” Mr. Anvar said.
Mr. Anvar accused the police of working overtime to alienate the public from the government. “The police scuttled Thrissur Pooram to advantage the Opposition politically,” he said.
“They arrested and remanded in judicial custody CPI(M) workers who stopped some miscreants from disrupting the Chief Minister’s Navakerala Sadas outreach programme at Arikode in Malappuram. The police have worked overtime to kindle public resentment against the LDF. In Wayanad, they prevented volunteers from distributing food in the disaster zone. As a comrade, I have to challenge the wrongdoers”, Mr. Anvar said.
