‘SOLAR SCAM PROBE REPORT IS PULP LITERATURE’

TH I RU VAN ANT HAP U RAM: Former Kerala chief minister and Congress leader Oommen Chandy is facing the biggest challenge of his five-decadelong political carrier. He was recently indicted by a judicial commission appointed by him to probe a multi-crore solar panel scam surfaced when he was heading a Congress-led UDF government in the state. Apart from graft, he’s also facing sexual assault charges.

In an interview with Hindustan Times’s Ramesh Babu, Chandy, who is known for his humble stature, spoke about the scam and his take on the findings off the commission.

Here are the excerpts from the interview: Besides corruption, the e commission has also raised d sexual assault charges agains t you. What is your comment? ? See I have been in the e midst of people for more tha an 50 years. Never were suc ch allegations levelled again nst me. A woman (Saritha Na air, the main accused in the sc cam), who is involved in mo ore than 30 cheating cases, com mes out with a letter…. I think k people won’t believe it. The commis-c sion has parroted wha at she had said in her letter. There is also some ambiguity ini the letter. At least four pa ages were added to her earlier letter. If you closely exam mine this letter, it is quite e vide that someone has wri itten for her.

In her earlier depos si she never raised any s allegations against me. Once she had even said a senior CPI(M) leader promised her ₹5 crore to talk against me. How can you take the words of a woman who frequently changes her statement?

If there is some iota of truth in what the commission has said, I am ready to quit public life. It is not solar scam report, it is Saritha report. It is a pulp literature and not a judicial report, and the present government used it to defame me. How did the solar scam happen? The commission says you know Saritha Nair since 202011? 1? I meet hundreds every day. Sh come to me e also, but I d remember Everythin started in when her former h band ca me to rai some seri personal p lem. He ca me with a re mendati part h I wasn’t aware of his or his wife’s antecedents. I was there to solve some personal issues, but persons concerned conveniently used me.

Named Lakshmi B Nair then, Saritha came to my office with a proposal for a solar panel business and I forwarded it to concerned ministries.

Later when her real picture emerged, I took strong action against some of my staff members who were soft towards her. And the case against her first husband Bjiu Radhakrsihnan that was hushed up during the earlier was fast tracked. He’s g double life-term ng his wife. I s more carelecting my

taff. Does you feel your open-door-policy led to these charges? I don't think so My life is an open book. My office was 24X7 live(He was the first chief minister to livestream proceedings of his office). I still believe that people who know me reject these charges with the contempt they deserve. Do you think the party backed you enough? The other day you said there were many attempts to pull you down and you faced them well, but once you succumbed to the blackmailing of a person. Yes the party and the UDF is with me. Even a Class 2 student can make out that these charges were trumped up to defame me. I don’t have much political ambition nownow. I have already announced, I won’t w hold any position. Abo out the blackmail attempt, tim me is not ripe to reveal this. Many M rumours are doing rou unds, but they are false. What is next for you?

I will take legal recourse to redress allegations heaaped on me. I will remain an orrdinary party worker and workk with the people. The state goovernment, which is driven byb vengeance, can tire mee out ome time, but I willl come se wild chargges. pening noww is a ent-sponssored se. Somee of don’t haave the take mme on ally, so they ing a ccon n to ccorner coonfiuthh will l..