UDF accuses Left govt of 'lackadaisical' approach on death threat plaint by NCP MLA

The Congress-led UDF opposition on Wednesday accused the ruling Left government and state police of not seriously treating the alleged death threat to life of NCP MLA Thomas K Thomas.

The UDF opposition raised the issue in the Assembly in a notice moved for adjourning it to discuss the issue.

The permission for adjourning the House was denied by Speaker A N Shamseer after Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that the MLA's complaint was received by the state police chief on August 7 and the investigation has been launched.

The CM also said that police have also taken steps to ensure adequate protection for him.

Even Thomas, who was removed from his party's working committee following the complaint, said he has no grievance against the police or the government.

The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MLA said thanks to the competent investigation of the police that some cases lodged against him in the past were proved to be false.

'Therefore, I trust the police and the government,' he said in the assembly.

In view of the denial of the permission for adjourning the House and discussing the issue, the UDF opposition staged a walkout.

Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan, in his walkout speech, said that despite the MLA's claims that in the past there were attempts to implicate him in false cases and even kill him, there has been no action till a complaint was lodged by Thomas recently.

Satheesan alleged that there were over three dozen instances of police lodging cases or not doing so based on who was involved in them.

He was responding to the CM's claim that the police always take strict action against culprits without looking at who the accused was or whether he was an influential person.

'We, therefore, have no faith in the police. In the instant case, the police approach is lackadaisical,' he contended.

The adjournment notice was moved by several UDF MLAs, including M Vincent and K K Rema alleging that the police and the state government were aware of the problems being faced by the NCP MLA, but no action was taken regarding that.

The NCP MLA has given a complaint to the state police chief against the alleged threat to his life from some members of his own party, a claim refuted by its state president P C Chacko who termed the allegation as 'absurd'.

Thomas on Monday had alleged in his complaint that some members of his party have been planning to kill him in order to bring a by-election in the Kuttanad assembly constituency in Alappuzha represented by him.

A day after his complaint, NCP chief Sharad Pawar removed Thomas from its working committee citing 'serious indiscipline'.