Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 31 (IANS) Leader of Opposition in the Kerala Assembly V.D. Satheesan on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on the Pinarayi Vijayan government, alleging a deliberate attempt to derail the high court-monitored Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Sabarimala gold smuggling case.

He claimed that the appointment of two Circle Inspectors with alleged links to the CPI(M) leadership has severely compromised the credibility and independence of the probe.

Satheesan questioned the criteria under which officers purportedly associated with a ruling party faction were inducted into a sensitive investigation mandated by the high court.

He said it was learnt that two names had been cleared before the court, but alleged that the process was influenced from behind the scenes by two senior IPS officers in the state and a top-ranking official based at the Crime Branch headquarters.

According to the opposition leader, the Crime Branch official in question had earlier earned notoriety while holding law and order charge for allegedly foisting false cases against Congress leaders.

Satheesan alleged that the same officer was now attempting, from within the Crime Branch, to weaken the SIT and manipulate the investigation in favour of the CPI(M).

Reiterating an allegation he had raised earlier, Satheesan said there was mounting evidence that senior IPS officers were seeking to exert influence over the SIT’s functioning.

Such interference, he said, was part of a larger design to render the investigation ineffective and to ensure that the probe did not reach the real beneficiaries and masterminds behind the alleged gold smuggling racket linked to Sabarimala.

The opposition leader further alleged that the objective of this group was to infiltrate the SIT, leak key developments to the government, divert the course of the investigation and shield the actual culprits.

He accused the government and the CPI(M) of orchestrating a systematic effort to scuttle the case, with a section of police officers actively abetting the move.

Warning that even the high court’s supervisory role was being undermined, Satheesan urged the judiciary to step in decisively. He called upon the court to conduct an urgent examination of the developments and intervene immediately to safeguard the integrity of the SIT and ensure an impartial and credible investigation into the Sabarimala gold smuggling case.

–IANS

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