The State government is reported to have initiated a legal process that might eventually lead to the withdrawal of criminal charges against six Left Democratic Front (LDF) leaders alleged to be responsible for the pandemonium that stalled the presentation of the Budget in the Legislative Assembly on March 13, 2015.
The protest prompted the then Legislature Secretary to file a complaint accusing the legislators of destroying public property and unruly behaviour. The police booked E.P. Jayarajan, V. Sivankutty, C.K. Sadasivan, K. Kunjahammed, all CPI(M) members, K. Ajith of the CPI, and K.T. Jaleel, an LDF Independent, in connection with the protest. The Crime Branch (CB) was then asked to probe, and the inquiry has been dragging on since.
Letter to CM
A letter to the Chief Minister by Mr. Sivankutty had initiated the current procedure. The ex-MLA told The Hindu that no agency had questioned him or the other accused in connection with the case. He had not received any summons and was unaware whether the CB had filed any charge in court. He said the LDF had taken a political decision to stop Mr. Mani from presenting the Budget. The Speaker had suspended the legislators for their actions. No person could be punished twice for the same offence. Moreover, the alleged transgression was political.
The Legislature Secretariat had reported a loss of ₹2 lakh. It had perused video recordings of the protest as part of an internal inquiry. It forwarded the findings to the police, who booked the LDF leaders.
