The rejection by the Supreme Court on Friday of the Kerala Government’s prayer for clarification over its April 24 verdict ordering reinstatement of TP Senkumar IPS as State police chief, a position from which he was removed almost a year ago, has come as a huge setback to the already beleaguered Marxist Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his one-year-old CPI(M)-led lDF Government.
Stating that there was nothing to clarify about its April 24 verdict ordering Senkumar’s reinstatement, the court also warned the Government that it knew the course of action to be pursued if the order was not
implemented.
The only option before the Government at this juncture, according to legal experts, is to reinstate Senkumar as DGP (law and Order) “at once” so that it can avoid further damage by informing the court about it when the IPS official’s contempt plea against the State Chief Secretary for not implementing the verdict comes up for hearing on Tuesday.
Sources said the Government was likely to issue an order reinstating Senkumar as State police chief on Friday itself or on Saturday. Senkumar said on Friday that he was not in a hurry as far as the matter of his reinstatement in service was concerned.
The call for reinstatement of Senkumar had gained strength in the bureaucratic and political circles of the State immediately after the apex court verdict favouring him came on April 24. The State secretariat of the CPI(M) itself had the very next day entrusted Pinarayi with the task of taking an appropriate decision in the matter.
The State law Secretary and other legal experts had advised the Chief Minister that there was no point in filing a review plea. Also, the Chief Minister himself was reportedly convinced to an extent that there was no other option but to reinstate Senkumar. However, the Government still decided to approach the apex court seeking “clarity”.
Now that the Government has suffered a huge setback, which justifies the warnings by legal experts, the Chief Minister himself and his office are in the dock. CPI, the second biggest lDF constituent that is not in good terms with Pinarayi, has already alleged that this is a tragedy brought about by Pinarayi’s special advisors.
The general opinion among the observers is that Pinarayi had perhaps taken the Senkumar issue as very personal as he has allegedly been doing in many other issues. “His image wouldn’t have taken such a beating if he had taken the inevitable decision immediately after the court ordered the IPS official’s reinstatement,” said a senior journalist.
The Senkumar affair has made yet another addition to the list of controversies in the balance sheet of the lDF Government that will be celebrating its first anniversary just over two weeks from now. It is entirely likely that Pinarayi’s critics within the CPI(M), who have remained silent so far, will come out openly against him, observers say.
The Congress-led Opposition UDF has already come out with the demand for the Government’s resignation. “The lDF Government has lost its moral right to continue in office,” said Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala. “The Government suffered all these legal reversals merely because of the false pride of the Chief Minister,” he said.
Chennithala said there was no need for the Kerala people to suffer the loss of Rs 25,000 as fine imposed by the court for the fault of the Chief Minister and Pinarayi should pay that amount from his pocket. “I have only one prayer: The Government should avoid a situation where the Chief Secretary will have to go to the prison,” he said.