Leader of the Opposition V.S. Achuthanandan has asked Chief Minister Oommen Chandy to expel Finance Minister K.M. Mani from the Cabinet in the light of disclosure by two UDF leaders with Cabinet rank that Mr. Mani had taken bribe from bar owners.
In a statement here on Monday, Mr. Achuthanandan said Mr. Mani had no Constitutional, legal or moral right to continue in the Cabinet now that Government Chief Whip P.C. George and Forward Communities Development Corporation chairman R. Balakrishna Pillai ‘publicly admitting’ that Mr. Mani had taken bribe. Since Mr. Mani has refused to step down, the Chief Minister should ask him to go, the Opposition Leader said.
Mr. Achuthanandan alleged that the investigation in the bar bribery case had not moved even an inch forward after the quick verification report became public. Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala had ‘tied down’ the Viglance as part of the efforts to shield Mr. Mani through misuse of power. All this amounted to breach of the law and Constitution. Courts should take suo motu cognisance of the ‘naked corruption’ and register cases, he added.
