Under current president Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption campaign, the party’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection is investigating Zhou for “serious disciplinary violations,” as the official Xinhua news agency reports. Media has not yet, however, specified the allegations against him.
The probe is an attempt to show the length to which Xi and the party will go in order to combat abuse of power reports The Wall Street Journal.
A commentary published in the official Peoples Daily makes the point that regardless of an official’s rank or supporters, punishment will result for violating laws or the party’s discipline.
In recent years an agreement has been in place ensuring that for the sake of party unity, most senior figures would not be investigated. Zhou’s case has been the first to break the agreement and is aimed at party purity instead. Communists are hoping to stay legitimate and to win more supporters.
The anti-corruption campaign has realized its vow of no off-limit targets, says political scientist Zhang Ming in The Guardian.
