Kerala Water Resources minister Mathew Thomas resigns
Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 26 : Kerala Water Resources Minister Mathew T Thomas, a nominee of the Janata Dal (Secular) in the CPI(M)-led LDF government, on Monday submitted his resignation to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
The move comes after the JD(S), a key partner in the LDF, Friday decided to replace Thomas with Chittur MLA K Krishnankutty.
Thomas handed over the resignation letter to Vijayan at the latter's official residence, Cliff House, this morning. "I have handed over my resignation letter to the chief minister. I am an MLA now," Thomas told reporters here.
On his performance as a minister in the last two and half years, Thomas said he cannot say he was fully satisfied, but was happy as he could take up various activities during his tenure in the water resources department.
Asked if he would stake claim for the post of the state party chief, Thomas said he had not put forward any such demand and had not listed any conditions for his resignation.
Thomas said he had functioned as the state president of the party and had helped it to grow. The party would not split and would remain in the LDF, he said.
The JD(S), headed by former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, has three MLAs in the Kerala Assembly. The national leadership, which had met at Bengaluru last week, had decided to replace Thomas with Krishnankutty.
Senior JD(S) leaders from the state including Krishnankutty and C K Nanu, the other MLA, met Gowda and held discussions in Bengaluru after which the national leadership had announced the decision to replace Thomas.
The two factions led by Thomas and Krishnankutty have been at loggerheads for quite some time over the party's lone ministerial berth.
Krishnankutty is likely to be sworn in as minister Tuesday. The 13th session of the Kerala Assembly is also beginning Tuesday.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
