Minister for Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes A.K. Balan has ordered a probe into the Wayanad land scam that promised to provide land to landless tribes affected by sickle cell.
The Vigilance probe would focus on the allegations related to providing land to tribes affected by sickle cell and the Ashikkum Bhoomi Adivasikku scheme that related to providing land to landless tribes.
In a statement here on Saturday, Mr. Balan said the previous Left Democratic Front government had allocated Rs.50 crore to the Wayanad district administration for implementing a scheme to provide land for landless tribes.
The United Democratic Front (UDF) government also formulated additional programmes such as Ashikum Bhoomi Adivasiku and land for sickle cell patients.
The government had received a large number of complaints that mainly highlighted the irregularities in the distribution of land. In several places, the land was purchased at a very low price, but was sold to the tribes at higher rates. He said the Vigilance probe was ordered on September 30.
Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president V.M. Sudheeran had written to Mr. Balan a few days ago seeking a comprehensive Vigilance probe into the irregularities in the land schemes.
He had referred to a preliminary inquiry by a KPCC committee and its recommendations for a Vigilance probe. His letter had upset the Chandy faction in the party. Though the portfolio was handled by P.K. Jayalakshmi, it was tightly administered by the then Chief Minister Oommen and his close aides.
Mr. Balan, while announcing that he had received Mr. Sudheeran’s letter seeking a probe, chose to conceal the fact that he had indeed ordered the probe three weeks prior to Mr. Sudheeran’s request.
The political import of the Minister’s action had its impact on the Congress party, with a large number of leaders questioning Mr. Sudheeran’s moves, especially at a time when the UDF was being thrust on to its back foot by the announcements of a series of motivated Vigilance inquiries intended to put its former Ministers on the defensive.
