Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday rejected the Congress-led UDF’s allegation that administration has come to a standstill due to strife between top officials in government.
The opposition is trying to create ‘unnecessary’ problems on trivial issues, Vijayan said in the state assembly.
The functioning of a government has to be judged based on its performance, he said.
He was replying to a notice for an adjournment motion moved by the Opposition on the alleged ‘cold war’ between top IAS officials and Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau Director Jacob Thomas resulting in ‘administrative stalemate.’ He said government could take up various infrastructure development initiatives, it intervened effectively in the law and order issues besides distributing welfare pension to about 35.59 lakh beneficiaries.
“Government achieved all this in the last nine months with the active support and cooperation of Civil Service and employees,” he said.
“Out of 18,000 files pending at the CM’s office, now only 200 are pending,” Vijayan said, brushing aside the Opposition charge that “files in the secretariat and CM’s office is not moving.”
“Officials have the freedom to work and government would protect them. Opposition is trying to politicise certain minor differences of opinion between officials,” Vijayan said.
On a notice “stating that no complaints against bigwigs will be taken up” put on the notice board of the Vigilance Directorate last week, Vijayan said “direction has been issued to look into the matter.”
On the functioning of the Vigilance bureau, he said guidelines would be worked out after getting necessary direction in this regard from the High Court.
Attacking the government, V D Satheesan (Cong), who moved the notice for motion, alleged that officials were not taking any decision due to “fear” of probe and action by Vigilance Director Jacob Thomas, who, he alleged, “acts in a vindictive manner.”
“A sword of Damocles is hanging over the officials in the form of Vigilance Director. Officials are not taking any decisions and Chief Minister remains as a mute spectator,” Satheesan said.
He also brought to the notice of the House complaints and probe by Vigilance against top IAS officials including Additional Chief Secretary (Finance) K M Abraham, Additional Chief Secretary Tom Jose “The situation has reached such an extent that administration is not moving forward,” he said.
Taking a dig at Vijayan, the Congress leader said “people used to say that Vigilance is a caged parrot or non-caged parrot. But here the vigilance is a domestic cow of the Chief Minister. It gives milk to the owner while strike others with its horn.”
Expressing dissatisfaction over the government not taking up the issue for discussion, the opposition staged a walkout. Before walking out, Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala alleged top officials were filing cases by using ‘benamis’ and administration has become “inept.”
