A file photo of Oommen Chandy (left) and Aryadan Muhammed (right).Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala High Court stayed a vigilance court order to register an FIR against Oommen Chandy in the solar scam case, offering a much-needed reprieve for the beleaguered Kerala chief minister and ending two days of nail-biting political drama.
The high court also berated the vigilance court in stinging language, asking how it can function with such a judge.
Strongly criticising the lower court, the HC said that the vigilance Court acted mechanically without knowing the nature and extent of its powers.
The HC stayed the lower court order for two months.
The High Court order comes even as widespread protests were reported from across the state seeking his resignation. DYFI and Yuvamorcha activists took to the streets raising slogans against the CM. There were reports of violence as the agitators threw stones at the police.
Police burst tear gas shells, used water cannons and batons to quell the agitators.
Earlier on Thursday, Thrissur Vigilance court had ordered to register FIR and initiate a probe against the CM and power minister Aryadan Mohammed based on the bribery allegations raised by solar-scam accused Saritha S. Nair.
Deposing before the Justice Sivarajan Commission probing the alleged scam in Kochi, Saritha on Wednesday alleged that she had given Rs 1.10 crore to the close aide of Chandy in Chandni Chowk in New Delhi.
Both Chandy and Aryadan, power minister, said that they were not afraid of any probe.
Aryadan has also filed petition with the HC challenging the Vigilance order. The minister has cancelled all his programmes for the day.
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