The solar scam that caused a stir in Kerala’s political landscape a decade ago has resurfaced, but this time the focus is on the conduct of the judicial commission that investigated the case, rather than the accused. Former Director General of Police (DGP) A Hemachandran has leveled serious allegations against Justice G Sivarajan, the head of the commission.
Hemachandran claims that Sivarajan was more interested in prying into the personal lives of the accused, engaging in what he describes as “moral policing” during the commission’s proceedings. These revelations are part of Hemachandran’s forthcoming memoir titled ‘Neethi Evide?’ (Where is justice?), to be published by DC Books. In a chapter titled ‘Solar Commission – alpayussaya reportum thudarchalanangalum’ (Solar Commission – a short-lived report and its repercussions), Hemachandran vividly recounts his experiences while deposing before the Sivarajan Commission.
According to the former DGP, the commission neglected its primary mandate, which was to investigate the fraudsters and the victims of the scam. Instead, it focused entirely on unrelated matters, particularly the personal lives of the accused and their alleged sexual relationships. Hemachandran criticizes the panel for intruding into the privacy of those appearing before it, sharing an instance where an officer was even questioned about the paternity of a child.
Furthermore, Hemachandran highlights the commission’s inappropriate jokes during the proceedings, which made the situation even more uncomfortable. Police officers who appeared before the commission filed a complaint with the state police chief, expressing their concern about the commission’s actions.
Hemachandran also recounts an incident where the commission’s advocate accompanied an accused individual to Coimbatore in an attempt to recover a CD allegedly containing explicit content. When this endeavor failed, the commission, in its report, shifted the blame to the media and the police, conveniently omitting the fact that the accused had deceived them.
Describing the commission’s report, Hemachandran compares it to a movie subjected to censorship, where explicit scenes are removed, resulting in a significantly shortened version. He alleges that a similar truncation occurred after the High Court scrutinized the Solar panel’s report.
Adding to the controversy, CPI leader C Divakaran recently revealed that the Justice Sivarajan Commission had accepted a fee of Rs 5 crore before filing its report against former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy.
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