By IANS
Thiruvananthapuram : Even as the likely return of former Congress leader K. Karunakaran into the party is being discussed in Delhi, Kerala Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan Thursday termed the veteran leader as Kerala’s most controversial politician ever.
“When he ruled the state, he went to any level to attack the opposition and used his might to finish (off) his rivals. These acts of his came under attack from even the courts. He is a very controversial politician,” said Achuthanandan after the weekly cabinet meeting here.
Achuthanandan also added that even though they are friends, he has filed a case against the leader in the palm oil import case.
In the palm oil case registered in 1999 when E.K. Nayanar was the chief minister, Karunakaran and two top bureaucrats have been accused of hatching a criminal conspiracy and causing a loss of Rs.20.32 million to the exchequer by importing 15,000 tonnes of palm oil from Malaysia at an enhanced price.
In reply to a question on why he offered support to Karunakaran in 2004 to overthrow the then Congress government led by A.K. Antony, Achuthanandan said in the political scenario prevailing in the state then, that support was necessary.
” Yes, it is true that we had some political alignments with Karunakaran then, but that was merely a temporary one. When our central leadership asked us not to have any relationship with him, we called off the interim arrangement,” said Achuthanandan.
Karunakarn, a four-time chief minister of Kerala, rebelled against the Congress party leadership in 2005 to form Democratic Indira Congress-Karunakaran (DIC-K).Last year, he merged his party with the National Congress Party (NCP).