Chief Minister VD Satheesan has strongly dismissed comparisons between Kerala and West Bengal regarding the appointment of former Chief Electoral Officer Sanjay Kelkar as his secretary, calling the controversy a “joke” and challenging critics to point out any actual wrongdoing.

Speaking about the controversy, Satheesan questioned the basis of the comparison with Bengal, where serious allegations were raised against the Chief Electoral Officer by the Trinamool Congress, Indian National Congress, and CPI(M). In Bengal, the accusation was that votes were systematically removed from the Electronic Voting Machines — a grave allegation that has no parallel in Kerala.

The Chief Minister pointed out that Sanjay Kelkar was appointed as Chief Electoral Officer from a panel submitted by the previous Pinarayi Vijayan government. The Election Commission of India made the final appointment from that panel. It was the LDF government that proposed his name in the first place.

“Did the CPI(M) have any complaint against him? Did the BJP, which was in the opposition, have any complaint?” Satheesan asked, noting that not a single complaint was filed against Kelkar regarding the conduct of the elections. He emphasised that the person who wrote the most letters to the CEO was himself, as the then Leader of the Opposition — and those were about general election matters, not personal allegations.

Satheesan described Kelkar as an efficient officer with an excellent track record, having served as Secretary of multiple departments under the previous government. Kelkar served as Secretary to the Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in various capacities including IT Secretary, Environment Secretary, Planning and Economic Affairs Secretary, and also as Taxes Secretary and GST Commissioner under the then Finance Minister.

“It was the Pinarayi government’s panel. The Chief Election Commissioner approved him from that panel. Did the CPI(M) file any complaint against him?” Satheesan reiterated, dismissing the entire controversy as a “ridiculous joke” and urging critics to focus on more constructive issues concerning the state’s future.