Kollam temple fire: Police chief under scanner

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kollam city police commissioner  P. Prakash  having  a good track record   is now under a cloud for succumbing to political pressures and allowing  the fireworks at Paravur Puttingal Devi temple, defying the district administration’s ban.

The young IPS officer had recommended permission for a ‘small-scale’ cracker work endorsing his subordinate’s views and  also allegedly failed in initiating any action to stop  the illegal firework that claimed over 100  lives.

Even as Mr Prakash preferred to be tight-lipped on the circumstances in which he favoured the nod for the fireworks, sources close to him said that there were pressures from all political parties to allow the show.

Kollam district collector A. Shainamol, who is also a young IAS officer, went  by the law despite the pulls and did not pay heed to  the last- minute report of the city police commissioner recommending small fireworks. But he seemed to have been carried away by the high-level influence, it is  believed.

“The temple authorities even made announcements that they had got permission for the fireworks and even hailed some political leaders for helping them obtain it. The firework contractors  stocked explosives in the  store room. All these happened in the presence of scores of policemen who were supposed to enforce the additional district magistrate’s orders,” said a revenue official.

Meanwhile, police sources said that the revenue officials could not wash off their hands. “The local revenue officials were also duty-bound to act against any violations of the ADM’s order banning the fireworks,”  senior police officer said.

He was said to have been handpicked by state police chief T.P. Senkumar to head Kollam city in April last, and he had played a key role in tracking notorious criminal Antony Varghese alias Aadu Antony.