Actress abduction case: Congress demands Kerala CM give up Home portfolio

Thiruvananthapuram, July 10 (IANS) The Congress party on Monday demanded that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan give up the Home portfolio, alleging that he tried to derail the investigation process in the actress abduction case by stating that there was no conspiracy.

The Congress reaction came after superstar Dileep was arrested by the police probe team on Monday evening after the police busted the conspiracy angle in the case.

State Congress president M.M. Hassan said the Left government had promised security for women, but in the actress abduction case, after the arrest of prime accused Pulsar Suni, Vijayan had immediately dismissed any conspiracy angle to the abduction.

Hassan accused three Left lawmakers and actors (Lok Sabha member Innocent - president of the AMMA - the actors body, legislators K.B. Ganesh Kumar and Mukesh) of trying to divert the case. "This is the first time in the history of the state that a Chief Minister and lawmakers of the ruling front are trying their best to spoil the investigation in a case," said Hassan.

Leader of Opposition and former Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala demanded that Vijayan apologise to the people for his statement that there was no conspiracy in the case.

"After Vijayan made that statement, the entire probe got derailed and even the probe team filed a charge sheet based on what he said. Things started to change ever since a jail inmate along with Suni revealed that there was more in this case. So the government and the police cannot take any credit for what has happened now," said Chennithala in a statement issued here.

Dileep was with the police since Monday morning at an undisclosed destination and late in the evening his arrest was recorded.

According to the police, Dileep will be produced before a magistrate later in the night.