The decision reportedly follows criticism by some Cabinet colleagues over the manner in which Vijayan handled the solar scam report and to counter Cabinet reshuffle rumours.
Sources said a Cabinet shake-up would soon be announced and there was every possibility of a swap in positions between Assembly Speaker P Sreeramakrishnan and a state minister.
Vijayan could also spring a surprise by naming a woman as the first female Speaker of the assembly. At present there are two women ministers in the Vijayan Cabinet.
State Labour and Excise Minister, T P Ramakrishnan, one Vijayan’s closest aides and who is not in the best of health, is likely to be relieved of the excise portfolio to reduce his work load.
Jayarajan had to quit as state industries minister in October last year after charges of nepotism when he appointed two of his close relatives to top state public sector enterprises.
However, last month, he and his party, the CPI-M, got a huge relief with the Kerala High Court quashing the charge-sheet registered by the vigilance department.
The CPI-M has always been under the firm control of the “Kannur lobby” in the party. Jayarajan hails from Kannur. Until he was unceremoniously dropped, Jayarajan was the most trusted aide of Vijayan.
By bringing him back, the chief minister expects to have enough ammunition to tackle any dissenting voices in the Cabinet.
At Thursday’s Cabinet meeting, the first dissenting voice against Vijayan was his party colleague and Law Minister A K Balan, who said the chief minister had shown undue haste in going public with the findings of the solar commission report.
State Revenue Minister E Chandrasekheran of the CPI and state Water Resources Minister Mathew T Thomas echoed Balan’s views.
They felt the decision to give approval for registering criminal, vigilance and also sexual harassment cases against former chief minister Oommen Chandy, his Cabinet colleagues, a former union minister, legislators and other Congress leaders in the Rs7mn solar scam case was a hasty one.
Balan is particularly unhappy that while Vijayan sought expert opinion from the advocate general and the director general of prosecution on the solar commission report, Balan and his law department had been kept in the dark.
On Thursday, Vijayan announced he was waiting for a third legal opinion and once that is submitted, the much-awaited government order for taking steps against Chandy and his men would begin.
State Finance Minister Thomas Issac is another person in the Cabinet who does not share the best of relations with Vijayan, but given the effective manner in which he handles the portfolio, Issac’s position is not said to be under any threat.
The CPI-M, which is getting ready for its upcoming state party conference to be followed by the party congress, is also mulling a bigger shake-up by dropping a few and inducting veterans like former minister S Sarma and legislators Raju Abraham and Suresh Kurup.
Vijayan accepts Shah’s challenge
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan yesterday hoped state BJP chief Kummanam Rajasekheran will motivate his party’s national president Amit Shah for a creative debate on Kerala aiming for its further development. In his Facebook post, Vijayan said they had wholeheartedly accepted Shah’s debate challenge on development and also cordially invited him for the same. “Who is back-pedalling from the debate now and why?” said Vijayan.
