A day after former Kerala DGP TP Senkumar moved the Supreme Court seeking contempt of court proceedings against Kerala Chief Secretary Nalini Netto over the delay in his reinstatement, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan hit out at him, saying that a court verdict can’t be implemented in a day.
"A Supreme Court verdict is final in matters of law in the country. This I have said earlier. But the state government has to consider certain other things before implementing the court verdict,” the Chief Minister told mediapersons in Malappuram on Sunday.
“An appropriate decision will be taken after examining the verdict. The government has no confusion in this. A court verdict can’t be implemented the very next day,” he added.
On Saturday, Senkumar moved the Supreme Court seeking that it initiate contempt of court proceedings. Senkumar claimed that he had written to the Chief Secretary the very next day after the SC verdict reinstating him, but alleged that no action was being taken.
On April 24 the Supreme Court ruled that the Kerala government's decision to remove Senkumar from the post of DGP for poor performance was arbitrary and unfair. Senkumar upheld the verdict as vindication for those who work honestly. “All states will be careful from now on to follow laws while appointing or removing officers,” Senkumar had said.
The CPI (M)-led Left Democratic Front had removed Senkumar from his post soon after coming to power in May 2016. The government had done so on the ground that there were lapses in how the Puttingal fireworks disaster and the rape and murder of Jisha, a law student from Perumbavoor, were handled while Senkumar was the police chief. He was replaced by Loknath Behra.