Kochi police cite security as journalists are stopped from questioning Kerala leader

Kochi city police allegedly prevented journalists from approaching Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to ask questions at an event on Saturday, The Hindu reported. Television journalists were waiting for the chief minister’s arrival at a convention centre in Kaloor when Peter K.J., an assistant commissioner in the Ernakulam subdivision, stopped them from getting near him. The officer cited security reasons.

In video broadcast by television channels, the officer said Vijayan was in the Z Plus security category. He did not give a clear answer when reporters repeatedly asked whether he had received instructions to prevent them from questioning the chief minister. The officer was also heard saying that he had spoken only from a security perspective and had not become angry with the journalists.

The supplied report did not say whether the police later allowed the media to question Vijayan. The incident came a day after the chief minister reportedly lost his temper when journalists sought answers in Thodupuzha. Their questions concerned allegations that he had received money from S.

Sasidharan Kartha, the former managing director of Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited. Reporters also asked about Vijayan’s recent chartered flight to flood-hit Malappuram. The flight had reportedly been lent by a benefactor whose identity the chief minister had not disclosed, according to the report.

As he left an official meeting on Friday, Vijayan declined to respond and told reporters to move aside. He also alleged that the journalists were inconveniencing members of the public who had come to submit petitions. The source material reports the police action and the earlier exchange but does not include a response from Vijayan’s office, the event organisers or journalists’ representatives.