CM Pinarayi Vijayan's decision will be applicable to all: Kodiyeri Balakrishnan

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan on Tuesday said that the Chief Minister's decision on allegations against transport minister Thomas Chandy would be applicable to all in the LDF, including NCP. At a press conference here, Mr Balakrishnan said that the LDF meeting on November 12 had entrusted the Chief Minister to take a call on the Chandy issue. The matter was discussed in the LDF meeting in detail. The CPM leader said that the Chief Minister would take appropriate decision. Earlier, NCP state president T. P. Peethambaran had spoken to Mr Balakrishnan over telephone to convey the discussions that took place in Kochi.

The NCP leaders are scheduled to meet the Chief Minister and Kodiyeri Balakrishnan on Wednesday. The NCP state committee which met in Kochi on Tuesday could not reach any consensus over Chandy issue after differences among its members. The opinion was divided on the need for the minister's resignation . Finally it was decided that a decision could be arrived after consulting the central leadership of the party. Mr Chandy, on his part, maintained that Supreme Court itself had said that court observations cannot be considered as part of verdict.

There were dramatic moments with Mr Chandy announcing that he would be leaving for New Delhi on Tuesday night to file a petition in Supreme Court on Wednesday. However, he changed the plan later following pressure from the LDF leadership. Meanwhile, in a statement, national general secretary Praful Patel said that NCP had noted the order of the High Court in the land matters relating to Mr Chandy. "After studying the implications of the court order, we will take an appropriate action in the next few days. The NCP wishes to reiterate that we maintain the highest probity in our conduct in public life," he added. Mr Patel said that the meeting of NCP state executive with LDF leadership and the Chief Minister would take place soon.