Thaindian News

Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 17 (IANS) Veteran Communist and Kerala’s leader of opposition V.S. Achuthanandan is firm on going to Tamil Nadu’s Kudankulam Tuesday, defying both his CPI-M’s directive and a request from the state home department.

State Home Minister T.Radhakrishna told reporters that the home department has, in a letter to the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader, requested him to reconsider the decision of his to travel to Kudankulam.

“I am none to criticise him, but the department has told him about the law and order situation and hence have asked him not to go,” he said.

Achuthanandan has taken a diametrically opposite stand to his party CPI-M, which at its last Party Congress held in Kozhikode early this year took a stand not to oppose the Kudankulam nuclear power plant.

CPI-M politburo member and senior party legislator Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said the party is not aware of Achuthanandan’s trip to Kudankulam.

Achuthanandan could be stopped on the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border by the Tamil Nadu Police, like the team of social leaders from here on a similar purpose was stopped Sunday, and made to return.

India’s atomic power plant operator Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) is building two 1,000 MW reactors with Russian help. However, there have been protests by local residents against the project.