Electricity Minister K. Krishnankutty has hinted that the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) will soon reach a detente with striking left trade unions.
Without specifics, Mr. Krishnankutty said a top-level meeting attended by Left Democratic Front (LDF) convener A. Vijayaraghavan, Communist Party of India (CPI) State secretary Kanam Rajendran and Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) leader Elamaram Kareem, MP, at the AKG Centre on Thursday had evolved a "formula" to settle the dispute amicably.
Mr. Krishnankutty refused to speculate whether the formula involved the removal of KSEB chairman B. Ashok from the post or rescinding the latter's controversial decision to bring Vydhyuthi Bhavan under the security blanket of the State Industrial Security Force (SISF). He merely said he was "always with the people and the right."
Mr. Krishnankutty has sought a report from Power Secretary Rajesh Kumar Sinha. Mr. Sinha would examine the issue from all angles, including the "damning" claims made on social media by Mr. Ashok.
Mr. Ashok had in an FB post accused left trade unions of brazen abuse of power and corruption during the tenure of the previous LDF government. M. M. Mani was the Electricity Minister at the time. The KSEB chairman's social media "outburst" had evoked a sharp reaction from Mr. Mani, who openly doubted whether his successor and Janata Dal (Secular) leader Mr. Krishnankutty had instigated Mr. Ashok's "insinuations".
He disputed the allegation that he had assigned scenic KSEB land to his relatives to start hydel tourism projects. The KSEB was a stakeholder in the project that involved only public entities in the cooperative sector. The KSEB's board had assigned the land in 2018.
Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan upped the ante in his dispute with Mr. Mani. He demanded the KSEB re-possess the large tracts of land assigned cheaply to Mr. Mani's "kin". He also demanded the government to roll back the proposed hike in power tariff. "The government can't expect the public to pick up the tab for the loss caused to the KSEB by the corrupt left union satraps," he said.
Mr. Satheesan highlighted the politically "embarrassing" paradox of the CITU and the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) hammering the Electricity Ministry when the LDF was in power. Arguably fearing that the Opposition would seek to put the government on the defence over the allegations articulated by Mr. Ashok, Mr. Krishnankutty hinted that he would hold talks with the union leaders on Friday to persuade them to withdraw the indefinite strike.
