A day after the Supreme Court quashed Thomas' appointment as the CVC, the party said it had always maintained that Thomas, an accused in the Palmolein import case, could not have been appointed to this constitutional post.
The CPI(M) today said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should explain to the nation how the decision to appoint PJ Thomas as the central vigilance commissioner (CVC) was taken when his name had cropped up in a corruption case in Kerala.
A day after the Supreme Court quashed Thomas' appointment as the CVC, the party said it had always maintained that Thomas, an accused in the Palmolein import case, could not have been appointed to this constitutional post.
"This is a very serious matter. The day Thomas was appointed, I was on record to say both in Parliament and outside that this appointment could not have been made. The Supreme Court verdict or opinion now completely vindicates position we had taken," Politburo member Sitaram Yechury told reporters in New Delhi.
"Now the government has to answer. The prime minister has said he will answer in Parliament on this issue. So we are waiting for that," Yechury said.
Thomas was appointed by a high-powered committee comprising the prime minister, home minister P Chidambaram and leader of opposition Sushma Swaraj, who had distanced herself from the decision by recording a dissent note.
With regard to the Supreme Court's observations in the matter, Yechury said the court "has been very clear that the high-powered committee erred in making a judgment on the institution of the CVC. That is a very serious matter. Given that, definitely we are going to ask for an explanation".
When asked about Thomas saying he would challenge the order, the CPI(M) leader merely said, "We are a democracy... people have the right to explain their positions."
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