Satheesan criticises Vijayan for repeating allegations over GNA power deal

    Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 7 (PTI) Keralam Chief Minister V D Satheesan on Saturday hit back at Leader of Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan over the controversy surrounding the state's proposed power purchase through the GNA platform, accusing him of repeatedly raising allegations despite being provided detailed explanations.

    In a statement, Satheesan said Vijayan has repeated the same allegations of "mystery" surrounding the power purchase deal even after he had given a detailed reply on Friday.

    He also asked Vijayan to produce documents to substantiate his claim that Himachal Pradesh had offered electricity to Keralam at Rs 12.50 per unit, saying the opposition leader had not responded to his question on the matter.

    Satheesan said Rajasthan had decided on October 18 to purchase electricity from Himachal Pradesh and the proposals related to the agreement were placed before the Rajasthan Electricity Regulatory Commission on October 28. The file containing the KSEB recommendation for a final decision reached him only on October 30, he said.

    The chief minister said Vijayan continued to question why Keralam did not purchase electricity from Himachal Pradesh, which the KSEB had reportedly found to be a better option.

    He also termed it contradictory that Vijayan was alleging that the power crisis in the state was artificially created while the KSEB itself had informed the government about the electricity shortage.

    "Despite my reply citing documents that the KSEB had informed the government about the power crisis, the opposition leader is repeating the same allegation. That is what is mysterious," Satheesan said.

    He further pointed out that a note submitted to the government by the then KSEB chairman had suggested that power purchase through the GNA platform could also be considered.

    "Is the opposition leader, who is still criticising the purchase of electricity through GNA, unaware of this note? Or is he pretending not to know about it?" Satheesan asked.

    The chief minister also welcomed Vijayan's admission that the GNA platform had been used during the previous government's tenure.

    Responding to Vijayan's demand that all files related to the deal be made public, Satheesan asked whether the latter, during his tenure as chief minister, had provided documents sought by the then opposition or even responded to their questions.

    He alleged that the CPI(M)-affiliated organisation in the KSEB had handed over all relevant documents to Vijayan and said he could obtain any additional records through established procedures.

    Satheesan maintained that decisions were taken only after examining the files and studying the details. "We do not sign just any tissue paper that comes before us," he said.

    Earlier in the day, Vijayan accused the chief minister of creating confusion over the power purchase deal and demanded that all related files and correspondence be made public.

    In a statement, the LoP said the chief minister was attempting to evade serious allegations instead of providing clarity on the deal. He also questioned the government's reluctance to release the complete records related to the agreement.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)