CM Pinarayi Vijayan terms visa denial mysterious

Thiruvananthapuram: Terming the Centre’s decision to deny a diplomatic visa to local self-governance minister K T Jaleel as unfortunate, Chief Minister Mr. Pinarayi Vijayan said that the reason for the centre’s decision was “mysterious”. “I don’t think that the centre would have any political gains from this decision. But the state strongly feels that the centre should not have objections to the travel of a minister from the state,” the Chief Minister said in a Facebook post.

He said that the government decided to depute a minister to Saudi considering the anxiety of families of those stranded there. The only intention was to get a real picture of the situation there as well as to extend possible assistance to the stranded NRKs, he said. “We are thankful to Saudi authorities for the concern being shown toward the NRIs stranded there. The state also does not have any complaint that the centre was doing nothing in the matter. But the presence of a minister from Kerala would have been a relief to the Malayalis stranded there as well as to their families,” said the Chief Minister.

Government sources said that the state may urge the centre to reconsider the decision. However, sources familiar with the developments said that the number of Keralites among those stranded in Gulf countries was comparatively low and hence if a minister from Kerala was allowed a diplomatic passport in this connection, other states could also raise similar demands. This could be one reason why the centre denied the diplomatic passport to Jaleel.

Meanwhile, BJP state president Kummanam Rajasekharan said that diplomatic passports were often issued only to those who were assigned any specific tasks by the central government. Former NORKA minister K C Joseph was also earlier denied a diplomatic passport. H ence it was cheap politics to blame the centre for denying a diplomatic passport to Jaleel, he said.

It’s no right, says Kummanam

BJP state president Kummanam Rajasekharan said on Friday that the controversy over the denying of diplomatic passport by union government to minister K.T. Jaleel was substandard.    Addressing reporters here, Mr. Rajasekharan said that none could  demand a diplomatic passport except those on a diplomatic mission for the union government in foreign countries.

"K.T.  Jaleel is not at all assigned by union government with any diplomatic mission", he said, adding that even parliament had  praised the effective intervention for Indian citizens by union government in Saudi Arabia. The Ministry of External Affairs is already working on it. "It is impossible for a state minister to intervene in the Saudi issue", he added. Citizens from fourteen states are in trouble in Saudi Arabia. "It is not practical to issue diplomatic passports to all ministers", he pointed out.