The Oommen Chandy Cabinet on Wednesday ordered a vigilance probe into the allotment of 2.33 acres of land to Mr T.K. Soman, a relative of the former chief minister, Mr V.S. Achuthanandan, at the fag end of the Left Democratic Front government’s term.
Chief minister Oommen Chandy told mediapersons that the Cabinet had decided to cancel the allotment of the land in Kasargode to Mr Soman, a former soldier, as it felt that there were many irregularities in the procedures followed.
“The Cabinet felt that a thorough probe was needed and that is why we asked the vigilance to look into it,” said Mr Chandy.
The chief minister said that only one acre of land was usually allotted to ex-servicemen but in this case, the land stretched to 2.33 acres.
“Also, the rules say that such land allotment should be approved by the government and the land should not be allowed to be sold for 25 years,” he said. “These rules were also not followed.”
Mr Chandy, however, took care not to mention Mr Achuthanandan’s name while disclosing the decision to conduct a vigilance probe.