VS plea to implead in palmolein case adjourned

THRISSUR: The Thrissur Vigilance Court on Thursday adjourned the plea of Opposition Leader V S Achuthanandan to make him a party in the palmolein case to March 24. In his petition, he requested to quash the order of the Kerala High Court which had given a clean chit to Chief Minister Oommen Chandy in the palmolein case in October, and a Division Bench order of December 2 that declared null and void the observation made by a Vigilance Court against the Chief Minster.The fifth accused in the case Jiji Thomson was present in the court when Vigilance Court judge V Bhaskaran adjourned the case to March 24. It was on Thomson’s petition that the Kerala High Court stayed further probe by the Vigilance Court in the case. He had asked the court to stop the re-investigation in the case by stating that his career prospects have turned bleak owing to the never-ending investigations.Newly-appointed Vigilance Special Prosecutor Biju Manohar appeared for the government in the court.