Ernakulam district collector ignored fiat, aided Seematti Textiles

Kochi: Ernakulam district collector M.G. Rajamanickam had ignored a letter sent by Kochi Metro Rail Ltd asking  him not to give any leeway to Seematti Textiles and that the land should be urgently acquired without any encumbrances and without stipulating any prior conditions, it is learnt.

Mr Elias George, MD of the Kochi Metro Rail Ltd,  sent the letter to the collector on March 10, 2015. In the letter,  Mr Elias George termed Seematti as  ‘not reliable interlocutors’  and asked the collector to effect the acquisition without any delay.

“The provisions of MoU were discussed by KMRL with the landowners extensively, clause by clause, at a meeting held at the collector's camp office on February 1, 2015 and a draft MoU was prepared. However,  regrettably the landowners have subsequently demanded further amendments,” the letter accessed by Deccan Chronicle said.

Interestingly, the final agreement signed by the collector and Seematti reveals that the standard clauses were replaced.  The KMRL alleges that the collector included the clauses without informing it.
    
The agreement was signed on May 16, 2015 adding clauses and conditions in violation of the standard adopted for other land owners.

The letter also stressed that there was  no point in carrying forward with these prolonged discussions any further since the landowners cannot be considered as  reliable interlocutors.  

The KMRL also claimed  that at a meeting convened by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy it was decided to make   one more attempt  by the KMRL and subsequently the meeting was held at the collector's camp office on February 1, 2015. Repeated attempts made by DC to contact the collector  were futile.