The Kerala government has decided to move the high court against the Centre’s demand of ₹132.61 crore towards the relief operations carried out by the Indian Air Force (IAF) since 2019 at a time the state government has a financial commitment of ₹638.5 crore towards Wayanad rehabilitation.

State revenue minister K. Rajan told The Telegraph that he held talks with chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday on the issue.

On Thursday, Kerala High Court asked the state government to furnish a utilisation certificate for the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) cash already set aside for or spent on past commitments before seeking additional amounts from the Centre for the rehabilitation of Wayanad’s landslide-hit areas.

The high court had noted that as of Thursday, Kerala had ₹61.53 crore in theSDRF after accounting for previous commitments totalling ₹638.5 crore.

Just when the state government was feeling hopeful about the high court’s willingness to take up the role of an “interlocutor”, chief secretary Sarada Muraleedharan on Friday received a letter from the IAF seeking immediate payment of ₹132.61 crore towards airlifting charges.

Rajan told this newspaper that the Centre was being harsh towards the state when it should have taken up the role of a “guardian”.

“We have decided to approach Kerala High Court yet again when the case will be taken up next week. We are being forced to toe the line of the Karnataka and Tamil Nadu governments, which had approached the Supreme Court over central grants. The BJP government is implying that we need to do book adjustments to avail funds from the existing SDRF, which is not feasible as we have already made commitments. On Saturday, I held consultations with the chief minister and has decided to come out with an order on the status of the SDRF,” Rajan said.

He said the treasury should have money when the rebuilding work is undertaken in Wayanad.

The Kerala government had been asking the Centre to make adjustments at their end, especially with regard to enhancing the road infrastructure and providing housing rents to the displaced survivors of floods and landslides. The Centre had been telling the state to meet these expenses from the treasury with the promise of reimbursement.

The Left Democratic Front government has decided to fight this issue politically, which saw MPs from Kerala, including Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, staging a protest outside Parliamenton Saturday.