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Journalism of Courage
For all its transparency talk,the Kerala government has been slow to address allegations on the solar scam
For several weeks now,Keralas legislative assembly,media and streets have been rife with questions about the extent of Chief Minister Oommen Chandys involvement in the solar scam. The scandal involves a company that promised clean energy solutions,but in fact cheated several people of crores. While the couple that ran the operation was arrested,subsequent revelations by a CPM-supported TV channel pointed to close links between the woman in question and the chief ministers aides. Phone records were produced to back up the companys connection with a range of politicians and power brokers,and Chandys staffers were eventually made to resign.
When he became chief minister of Kerala,a clean and open government was one of Chandys major talking points. He frequently emphasised that good governance and corruption-free administration depended on transparency. He webcast proceedings in his office through a permanently installed CCTV camera,and set up a 24215;7 call centre to address complaints. These,he said,were intended to show how serious his government was about openness and responsiveness to citizens. Now,by failing to frontally address the allegations against his associates and himself,he may not be living up to that promise.
