THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala and his supporters are upbeat over the Vigilance raid on PWD secretary T. O. Sooraj who has been suspended from service.
While Muslim League leader and Industries Minister P. K. Kunhalikutty has publicly denied having any links with the bureaucrat, Mr Chennithala has tried to prove a point that Vigilance is impartial.
He expects the move against Mr Sooraj to give him the image of a crusader against “corruption and other ills in society,” something he expected from ‘Operation Kubera’ but failed to get.
Meanwhile, the ‘I’ group has also launched a whisper campaign projecting Mr Chennithala for the CM’s post, especially in the background of Mr Oommen Chandy being constantly under attack over the solar case and bargate.
Sources say Mr Chennithala has collected enough ammunition to make Finance Minister and KC (M) chairman K. M. Mani fall in line as well.
A senior Congress leader told DC that ever since Mr Chennithala expressed his desire to step down from the post of PCC chief, he had eyed the chief minister’s chair.
But it may be recalled that it was after intense lobbying on the sidelines of the Lok Sabha election that Mr Chennithala could join the UDF cabinet as home minister in charge of vigilance.
“During the last several weeks, Chennithala was keen on developing his image further. It has come to light that he had sought the help of leaders of key allies like Kunhalikutty and Mani.
Chennithala has got crucial evidence in the bargate where two bar owners have given their statements against Mani making him defensive,” said a Congress source.
The grapevine is that Mr Chennithala is keen on seeing a leadership change immediately after the local body elections in September 2015.
But a top ‘A’ leader told DC that Mr Chennithala had been seeking his police officials’ help in boosting his image similar to that of his Godfather K. Karunakaran, who was considered as the state’s best home minister.
