The Kerala High Court on Tuesday said that it would hear a petition that challenged the continuation of state Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, following the alleged failure of the collective responsibility of the cabinet, with former Transport Minister Thomas Chandy’s resignation.
The court said that it would hear the case on November 30.
Chandy resigned earlier this month, after the Kerala High Court dismissed his plea seeking to quash a report by Alappuzha District Collector TV Anupama accusing him of land grab.
He was the third minister from the Pinarayi Vijayan cabinet who was forced to resign, after CPI (M) heavyweight EP Jayarajan in October 2016 following allegations of nepotism, and Transport Minister and NCP leader AK Saseendran, who was forced to quit in March this year, after a tape with sexual conversation surfaced.
The petition was filed by RS Sasikumar, a former member of the Kerala and Cochin Universities, who argued that the Chief Minister had lost the Constitutional mandate to continue in power, as several ministers have resigned, the Times of India reported.
The Deccan Chronicle reported that the petitioner pointed out the failure of collective responsibility of the cabinet as mentioned in the section of 163 and 164 of the Constitution.
The controversy over Thomas Chandy's land grab surfaced after Alappuzha district collector TV Anupama submitted a report to Revenue Principal Secretary PH Kurian in August this year.
The report stated that portions of Marthandam Lake had been leveled for building the Minister’s Lake Palace Resort. The report has also said that a paddy field was levelled to build a parking lot for the resort.
Ever since the controversy broke, NCP has been backing its only minister in the Pinarayi cabinet. The state government had also delayed taking a stand in the matter, asking Thomas Chandy to decide whether he will step down or not.
Thomas Chandy, who is the richest legislator in the state, belongs to the National Congress Party (NCP), an ally of the LDF.