Kerala's Satheesan government orders 4th SIT in months: What's being probed
Synopsis
Four SITs in under four months — Kerala CM Satheesan's government is using special investigation teams at an unprecedented pace to revisit LDF-era cases. The latest, targeting the Kannur railway station episode that Satheesan himself once called 'political drama', is the most politically loaded of all: the man who denied it is now ordering the probe.
Key Takeaways
The Kerala UDF government under CM V.D.
Satheesan has ordered four SITs since taking office in May 2025 .
The first SIT, announced on 18 May , probed an alleged 2023 assault on Youth Congress workers in Alappuzha ; it led to the suspension of senior officer M.R.
A second SIT in July examined alleged irregularities in Kerala PSC examinations.
A third SIT, ordered on 31 August , scrutinises irregularities around the proposed Lionel Messi and Argentina team visit to Kerala.
The fourth and latest SIT targets the Kannur railway station incident of 25 February , in which former Health Minister Veena George was allegedly attacked; charges included attempt to murder .
Satheesan had publicly dismissed the Kannur case as a 'deliberate lie' when he was Leader of the Opposition.
The Kerala government led by Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan has ordered its fourth Special Investigation Team (SIT) since assuming office in May 2025, with the latest probe targeting the Kannur railway station episode involving former Health Minister Veena George. The rapid deployment of SITs has emerged as a defining feature of the new United Democratic Front (UDF) administration, raising questions about both the scale of alleged past misconduct and the political calculus driving each inquiry.
The Four SITs at a Glance
The first SIT was constituted on 18 May — within hours of the new government being sworn in — to investigate an alleged 2023 assault on Youth Congress workers by security personnel of then Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in Alappuzha. That probe produced an early and significant outcome: the suspension of senior police officer M.R. Ajith Kumar over allegations of interference in the investigation.
The second SIT, announced in July, was assigned to the Crime Branch to examine alleged irregularities in Kerala Public Service Commission (PSC) examinations. The third followed on 31 August, ordered to scrutinise financial and other irregularities surrounding the proposed visit of footballer Lionel Messi and the Argentina national team to Kerala — a high-profile event that reportedly did not materialise as planned.
The fourth and latest SIT concerns the Kannur railway station incident of 25 February, barely two months before the state Assembly elections.
The Kannur Episode: What Happened
On 25 February, activists of the Kerala Students Union (KSU) staged a black-flag protest against then Health Minister Veena George at Kannur railway station. Five activists were arrested, and police registered a case that included a charge of attempt to murder, alleging that George had been attacked with a weapon and sustained a serious injury to her neck.
The severity of the charge was almost immediately contested. Satheesan, then Leader of the Opposition, publicly dismissed the case as political drama and a deliberate lie, citing the absence of corroborating CCTV evidence. The episode became a charged election-season issue and, subsequently, a subject of widespread social media scrutiny.
Political Reversal and the New Probe
The April 2025 election transformed the political landscape. Veena George lost her seat, and the Left Democratic Front (LDF) suffered a sweeping defeat. The same Satheesan who had questioned the original police version now heads the government ordering a fresh investigation into it.
The new SIT is mandated to re-examine the CCTV footage from the station, question police officers who were present and those who investigated the original case, and scrutinise how the serious charges — particularly attempt to murder — were framed. Statements from Veena George and her gunman are also to be recorded.
What the Probe Could Establish
The central question the SIT must answer is whether the original police case was an accurate account of events at Kannur railway station, or whether the charges went beyond what the available evidence warranted. This comes amid a broader pattern in which the UDF government has chosen to revisit multiple decisions and actions from the preceding LDF administration.
Notably, the suspension of M.R. Ajith Kumar in the Alappuzha SIT demonstrates that these probes carry real consequences for serving officers. Critics of the current government, however, argue that the pace and political targeting of the SITs reflect partisan intent as much as accountability.
What Comes Next
With four SITs running in parallel — covering an alleged assault on political workers, public exam irregularities, a failed celebrity sports event, and a contested criminal case — the Satheesan government has placed the immediate past firmly under official scrutiny. The outcomes of these probes, particularly the Kannur inquiry, are likely to shape the political narrative in Kerala through the remainder of the year.
Point of View
And is now deploying state machinery to prove it. That may well be justified if the original case was indeed inflated for electoral purposes, but the speed and sequencing of these probes risk the appearance of selective justice rather than systemic reform. The real test is whether the SITs produce outcomes that survive judicial scrutiny — or whether they become instruments of political attrition that future governments will simply reverse with SITs of their own.
NationPress
1 Sept 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
How many SITs has the Kerala government ordered since CM Satheesan took office?
The Satheesan-led UDF government has ordered four SITs since assuming office in May 2025. They cover the Alappuzha assault on Youth Congress workers, Kerala PSC exam irregularities, the proposed Messi-Argentina visit, and the Kannur railway station episode involving former minister Veena George.
What is the Kannur railway station SIT about?
The SIT is re-examining a 25 February incident in which KSU activists staged a black-flag protest against then Health Minister Veena George at Kannur railway station. Police had registered a case including attempt to murder, but the charge was widely disputed. The SIT will re-examine CCTV footage, question officers, and record statements from George and her gunman.
What came out of the first SIT ordered by the Satheesan government?
The first SIT, ordered on 18 May to probe an alleged 2023 assault on Youth Congress workers in Alappuzha, led to the suspension of senior police officer M.R. Ajith Kumar over allegations of interference in the investigation.
Why is the Kannur SIT politically significant?
CM Satheesan, when he was Leader of the Opposition, publicly dismissed the original Kannur case as political drama and a deliberate lie. He is now the head of government ordering a fresh probe into the same episode — a reversal that critics and observers have flagged as politically loaded.
What was the Messi-Argentina SIT ordered to investigate?
The SIT announced on 31 August was tasked with examining financial and other alleged irregularities surrounding the proposed visit of footballer Lionel Messi and the Argentina national team to Kerala, an event that reportedly did not proceed as planned.
