With Chief Minister Oommen Chandy sharing the dais with party heavyweights, including KPCC president V.M. Sudheeran, the stage was set for some weighty comments from the speakers.
But the small expectant audience waiting to soak up candid exposures and pithy political remarks were in for a disappointment. The function organised here on Wednesday to release a book authored by Forest Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan on the T.P. Chandrasekharan murder case turned out to be a tame affair, following a directive issued by the Election Commission.
Titled ‘TP Murder: Quest for the Truth’, the book, published by DC Books, deals with Mr. Radhakrishnan’s experiences during his tenure as Home Minister during the police investigation into the murder case that had rocked the State.
In his welcome speech, publisher Ravi DC announced that the Chief Minister who was scheduled to release the book and Mr. Sudheeran, the recipient of the first copy, had been prohibited by the Election Commission from speaking on the topic, though Mr. Radhakrishnan was allowed to talk on the book. Referring to the constraint imposed by the Election Commission, Mr. Chandy said he was avoiding a speech. Mr. Sudheeran, who admitted he had not read the book, also kept mum on the topic.
In his address, Mr. Radhakrishnan said there was no need for a long speech on the book. “A fire is a fire, whether it is a blaze or ember”.