Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan cut short his family tour to Dubai, Singapore and Indonesia and arrived in Thiruvananthapuram early on May 18.
Mr. Vijayan was earlier expected to return only on May 20. However, officials said that strengthening pre-monsoon showers in Kerala, outbreaks of infectious diseases, and the threat of landslips and flooding had possibly compelled him to shorten his holiday.
They said the Chief Minister is reportedly scheduled to review the State’s monsoon and disaster management preparedness. The rains are expected to intensify over Kerala in the next few days.
The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) Opposition had earlier attempted to stir a controversy about the alleged secrecy surrounding Mr. Vijayan’s foreign tour.
Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan had alleged that Mr. Vijayan had left a State reeling from a scorching summer in the lurch and criticised him for not handing over the charge of the former’s office to a Cabinet colleague.
During Mr. Vijayan’s absence, the Opposition had accused the police of doing little to curb violent street crimes. It slammed the law enforcement for its alleged apathy to complainants, including victims of domestic violence.
However, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] had defended Mr. Vijayan’s holiday. CPI(M) State secretary M.V. Govindan had said Mr. Vijayan had sought the party’s sanction to go abroad. Earlier, the Mr. Vijayan had received the Centre’s consent for travel.
CPI(M) State secretariat member A.K. Balan said Mr. Vijayan had paid for his private travel. Quoting the Bible, Mr. Balan noted that even “God had rested seven days after creation”.
Mr. Balan said Mr. Vijayan had taken tremendous strain during the Lok Sabha election campaign and was deeply involved in electioneering across Kerala.
Mr. Vijayan had chaired Cabinet meetings online during his foreign trip and received daily briefs from officials.
