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Journalism of Courage
The CPI(M) today dismissed reports that it had decided to initiate disciplinary action against Kerala Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan for approaching the Centre for a CBI probe into the lottery issue without taking the party leadership into confidence.
“The Politburo has not taken any such decision. We have not discussed the issue. Reports contrary to that are false,” CPI(M) Politburo member S Ramachandran Pillai told reporters here.
His comments came in the backdrop of a section of the media reporting that the Politburo decided to censure the Chief Minister on the contentious lottery issue in the state.
Achutanandan had come under sharp attack from his detractors for approaching the Centre for a CBI probe into alleged irregularites in the operation of lotteries from outside the state involving thousands of crores of rupees.
The 85-year-old Marxist was demoted midway during his tenure from the Politburo to the Central Committee for openly airing views on the SNC-Lavalin case in which CPI(M) state secretary and plitburo member Pinarayi Vijayan is an accused. The case relates to alleged irregularities in some power projects when Vijayan was the energy minister.
He was earlier censured for his views against receiving ADB loans by the state in 2007,which was contrary to the stand taken by the party. Achuthanandan was also suspended from the politburo the same year for an open verbal fight against Vijayan on party issues.
