Pathanamthitta: Vigilance authorities have warned that any attempt to influence judges at the State School Kalolsavam (arts festival), which begins in Thrissur on January 14, will invite strict action. The Thrissur Vigilance wing has put extensive monitoring measures in place ahead of the event and has collected detailed information on judges for all competitions.

Systems have also been set up to detect and report any attempts to contact judges or organisers. Vigilance officials have gathered intelligence on groups that have allegedly interfered in the festival over the years.

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Judges who previously faced complaints during sub-district and district-level competitions, as well as those linked to allegations, will be kept under close watch. Education Minister V. Sivankutty has said that the vigilance presence at the festival will be strong.

The Vigilance Directorate is finalising a detailed action plan. Mechanisms are being put in place to report bribery or other irregularities. Brochures carrying the vigilance toll-free number, 1064, will be distributed at all 25 venues, with 10,000 brochures printed for the festival.

Special monitoring teams will be deployed at every venue. Vigilance authorities will also act against fraudulent appeals filed in the name of the festival. The State Intelligence Department will remain on alert as well.

Disputes have surfaced at some district-level festivals in the past. In one instance, an individual accused in a POCSO case was appointed as judge in a district. In another district, the appointment of a judge with no connection to Margamkali (a ritual art form practised by Kerala’s Syrian Christian community) triggered controversy.

Vigilance officials have received information that a group involved in influencing the selection of judges is active in the state. Two years ago, leaked phone conversations between members of such a group had made headlines. During the 2018 State School Kalolsavam held in Thrissur, fake appeals filed in the name of the Child Rights Commission were detected. The Crime Branch investigated the case, registering 14 cases and arresting seven accused. Trials in these cases are currently underway at the Thrissur Chief Judicial Magistrate’s Court.