: Amid the simmering storm over his appearance as counsel for various clients in the High Court, senior lawyer M.K. Damodaran, who was appointed legal adviser to the Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, told The Hindu that he would now ‘decline’ the post and save the government from embarrassment.
Mr. Damodaran said he would soon write to the government expressing his unwillingness to accept the position, as his appointment has snowballed into a controversy within the ruling LDF as well.
Mr. Damodaran, while being appointed as the legal adviser to the government, had appeared as counsel for the controversial lottery agent Santiago Martin in a lottery fraud case, for INTUC State president R. Chandrasekharan in the corruption case related to Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation, and also for a quarry owner, in the High Court of Kerala.
“I have not assumed charge as the legal adviser to the Chief Minister, though the State government issued the appointment order on June 9,” Mr. Damodaran told The Hindu .
The government had accorded the rank and status of the government Principal Secretary for the post of legal adviser, albeit without any remuneration, which invited widespread criticism. The government order would hold till Mr. Damodaran declines it or the government revokes it.
In his first public response to the controversy, Mr. Damodaran said he had not called for any government files and not incurred any expense to the government by virtue of the appointment.
“The Chief Minister has not sought any advice from me on any matter so far. The appointment will in no way undermine the post of Advocate General, who would render his advice to the State government. My responsibility is to render advice to the Chief Minister alone. If required, the Chief Minister can clarify any legal doubts that may arise in due course. No files have been sent to me till this moment and I am not expected to verify any government files,” Mr. Damodaran, who was the Advocate General during the tenure of the E.K. Nayanar-led government, said.
“Though the Chief Minister and the CPI(M) wanted me to assume the post of Advocate-General this time too, and waited for my word for 10 days after the first Cabinet, I declined to take up the job. I am more concerned about the conduct of SNC-Lavalin case in which Mr. Vijayan was arraigned as an accused. I secured Mr. Vijayan a discharge in the case from the trial court,” he said.
Incidentally, the hearing of the revision petition filed by the CBI in High Court against the discharge of Mr. Vijayan will come up before the High Court of Kerala in a couple of months.
BJP State president Kummanam Rajasekharan has approached the High Court of Kerala with a petition seeking to quash the appointment of Mr. Damodaran.
