Opposition Leader V. S. Achuthanandan on Saturday justified the engagement of lawyers from outside government service to fight the lottery case when he was the Chief Minister noting that it was done to stem revenue losses.
Replying to questions at a press conference, the Opposition leader said that the State was losing Rs. 22 crore a day in revenues because of the sales of lotteries from other States by Santiago Martin in Kerala. The government had spent more than Rs. 1 crore for engaging senior lawyers to fight the case. As a result, the lotteries of other States could be banished from the State.
“I had the right to engage lawyers from outside government as Chief Minister. The expense is justified in view of the revenue losses.”
He had engaged lawyers from outside to deal with the ice cream case also, as the unravelling of the case that led to the death of two girls was in public interest. He had to ensure proper conduct of the case. The charge in a case now before the High Court was that even the courts had been influenced through bribery in the case.
He said that allegations that the present government was appointing ineligible persons as judges and public prosecutors had come to his notice. Relatives of people who had raised allegations against him had been posted as government pleaders. This was an appeasement policy. He was enquiring into it and would come out with his response later.
The Opposition Leader said that the Opposition protests in the Assembly over different issues were necessary. It would continue to agitate over those issues. The sittings turned stormy because of issues such as the recusal of the judge hearing the palmolein case, the Nirmal Madhav issue, unauthorised use of phone by R. Balakrishna Pillai while under imprisonment, the Valakom case, premature release of Mr. Pillai from jail, corruption in TTP and KMML and remarks of Minister K. B. Ganesh Kumar and Chief Whip P. C. George.
The Chief whip had ridiculed and threatened the judge in public. Besides that, the UDF government was undermining the rule of law in several ways. No action had been taken against Mr. George and Mr. Ganesh Kumar for their abusive public speeches.
Mr. Achuthanandan said that he would not be cowed down by abuses or propaganda in his fight. He would not turn a Nelson’s eye towards criminality because the accused are rich and famous aristocrats. He had declined to accept the iPad send to him by Industries Minister P. K. Kunhalikutty because he was not on friendly terms with Mr. Kunhalikutty. (The Industries Department is presenting iPads to all members of the Assembly)
