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Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has said that the Kerala government has committed a grave constitutional error by ordering a judicial enquiry against Central agencies investigating the sensational gold smuggling case with suspected involvement of political bigwigs in the State.
Singh told newspersons here that the State government’s decision works at cross-purposes with principles of federalism and lends credence to the theory that certain big politicians in the State are finding it hard to come to terms with the Central probe into the international racket that is closer than ever to unraveling the truth.
Defending the indefensible
In Kerala, as part of Assembly election campaign, Singh said that the State government had sought to defend the indefensible while holding forth that the judicial inquiry was being ordered to probe the ‘jurisdictional overreach and pronounced political bias’ on the part of the Central agencies.
The State administration must have the Election Commission’s permission to set the probe in motion in the first place, he said. Worse, the State government had not yet been able to come out with a credible terms of reference document or names of the Central agencies that would come under the judicial probe’s ambit.
Shorn of credibility
While dwelling on politics, Singh said the CPI(M)-led LDF and Congress-led UDF are shorn of credibility. They find it easy to break bread with each other in both West Bengal and Tamil Nadu while they go each other’s throat in Kerala. The fronts mistakenly think that they have led voters to believe that they are fighting each other, but the BJP has exposed their game and has instead offered itself as a credible political alternative.
According to Singh, the BJP’s manifesto was anchored on welfarist principles and development and pledged to enact a State law to preserve Sabarimala Ayyappa temple traditions. The BJP rises above caste or religion considerations and bats for inclusive growth. He recalled how the Modi government has passed a law to protect the rights of Muslim women by prohibiting the practice of ‘triple talaq.’
The BJP also vowed to end the vicious cycle of violence that has spawned widows, orphaned children and bereaved mothers in the State and elsewhere. Before signing off, the Defence Minister said that the bogey of counter investigations would not deter Central agencies from pursuing the truth in the gold smuggling case.
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