Even as Mr Chandy is struggling to offset the political impact of the palmolein case, the titanium scam has come back to haunt him.

Once again, it is a TV channel which has come out with two letters written by Chandy to the chairman of the Supreme Court monitoring committee, Mr G, Thyagarajan. The letters written in April 2005 and January 2006 show the undue haste with which the Chandy went ahead with the Titanium project – a Rs 250-crore waste treatment project of the Travancore Titanium Products Limited (TTPL) – although the Kerala State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) had not granted clearance for the project.

The first letter which Chandy sent on April 23, 2005 came after the KSPCB issued a notice to the company to close down within a week for failing to meet the Board’s norms and guidelines, which was to expire on April 26, 2005. .

In the letter Chandy had requested the chairman of the SC monitoring committee for extension of the time needed to carry out pollution control measures in TTPL. Mr Chandy had contended that a closure at this stage would hit the future operations of the company besides rendering 1250 workers jobless.

But a gleeful Opposition LDF, which has lost no time in twisting the knife in the UDF wound, said Chandy had no business to write the letters especially after the KSPCB had refused to grant the requisite clearance for the project. The letters showed, if proof was needed, of Chandy’s undue interest in the project, which caused the state exchequer a loss of over Rs 80 crores.

Significantly, the minister who was in charge of the KSPCB, Mr K K Ramachandran Master refused to pressure the Board for clearance, incurring Chief Minister Chandy’s wrath. Mr Chandy went on to divest Mr Ramachandran of the KSPCB and entrust the same to A Sujanapal, who died recently. .A day after Mr Sujanapal took control of the KSPCB, the Board gave clearance to the waste treatment project, obviously under political pressure. Mr Ramachandran had refused to pressure the KSDPCB because he ‘smelt’ the tremendous scope for corruption in the project. He had to lose his ministerial job for refusing to bow to the pressure exerted by both Mr Chandy and KPCC chief Ramesh Chennithala.

Determined to cash in on Mr Chandy’s discomfiture, the LDF has demanded a CBI probe into the scam and resignation of Mr Chandy as the CM.

It goes without saying that the titanium scam has exploded in Chandy’s face, putting him and the UDF Government under tremendous pressure and tension.

Meanwhile, there are indications that the beleaguered Chandy and his government are working on a counter attack against the LDF with leader of the opposition VS Achuthanandan the target of the onslaught. Coming days would further ratchet up the already high tension besetting the political landscape of the state. (IPA)