Minister dupes LDF with PIL talk

KOCHI: Transport Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan on Friday bailed out the ruling United Front in Kochi corporation brandishing a sub-judice bogey, which legal experts rubbished, from the opposition assault demanding a judicial probe into the Fort Kochi boat tragedy which killed 11 people.

The opposition, which stalled the corporation council meeting on few occasions for the last 12 days for the probe, meekly bought the argument and called of the stir.

Mr Radhakrishnan who presided over a negotiation meeting attended by the UDF and LDF leaders told reporters that the government will consider ordering a judicial probe only after the High Court decided the public interest litigation demanding the same.

“The government does not want to consider it as it’s a sub judice,” said the minister. The CPM- led opposition soon announced that it was withdrawing the agitation, citing that the agitation was a total success. “The government has hiked the compensation for the families of deceased from '5 lakh to '7 lakh,” said CPM district committee secretary P Rajeev. “It has also asked the District collector to submit a report on revising the compensation package and Water Transport Department director Shaji V Nair to conduct a fitness auditing of the boats.”

Legal experts, however, trashed the minister’s observation that the issue was sub judice. “As per the Commissions of Inquiry Act, it is the state government which should order the judicial probe and a case pending with the court can’t be a reason for not ordering probe,” senior advocate in Kerala High Court K. Ramkumar told Deccan Chronicle. “And it will not be sub judice.”

Mayor Tony Chammany, MLAs Hibi Eden, Benny Behanan, S. Sarma, district collector M.G Rajamanickam and other officials also attended the negotiation meeting held at government guest house.