Just when the ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI-M] appeared to be losing the plot on the contentious SilverLine semi high-speed rail corridor project, the Supreme Court on Monday came out with what could be a face-saving order for the Left Democratic Front government in Kerala.
The Supreme Court dismissed a petition seeking to defer the boundary survey for social impact assessment study even as the government was struggling to strike a delicate balance between its ambitious plans and pacify angry agitators.
However,the political challenge for the CPI(M) would continue as the streamrolling tactics of the government to lay demarcation stones not only invited public wrath but also drew flak even from its partner, the Communist Party of India (CPI). K. Prakash Babu, CPI assistant secretary and national council member, even sought the government to mend its ways and address the apprehensions of the people rather than acting too hastily on the project.
However, thorny problems such as land acquisition, financial burden and environmental concerns seemed to have been pushed to the back burner. Meanwhile, the emergence of a gazette notification in October last has punched the holes in the argument of the State government that the survey was not for acquiring land for the SilverLine project.
Undeniably, the one-on-one meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in Delhi last week failed to clear up the ambiguity in the proposed project of Kerala Rail Development Corporation Limited (K-Rail), a joint venture company under the State government and the Ministry of Railways.
What transpired at the closed-door meeting remains unknown. The Chief Minister had requested the Prime Minister to fast track the sanction of the Detailed Project Report of the SilverLine project.
There is no reason to disbelieve a Chief Minister who clarified at a news conference subsequently after his meeting with the Prime Minister that the latter had assured him that he would discuss the project with the Union Railway Minister.
This was seen in the different reactions of Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw in the Lok Sabha and in the Rajya Sabha. His statement in Rajya Sabha was more precise when he said that the approval for the SilverLine project could be granted by the Union Cabinet after examining its financial and technical aspects.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) State leadership seems to be playing hide-and-seek on the issue although the party’s national general secretary C.T. Ravi said that the cordial meeting between the Prime Minister and Chief Minister could hardly be construed as the Centre’s approval for the project. Incidentally, BJP State president K. Surendran said Mr. Vijayan was trying to mislead the people by stating that the Prime Minister responded positively.
