Vigilance Court judge N V Raju dismissed the petition claiming that the complainant had failed to disclose sufficient material facts that show that the respondents listed in the petition committed any offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The petitioner, Kalamassery-based Girish Babu, citing revelations by the Income Tax Interim Board of Settlement (ITISB), New Delhi, had named the CM, UDF leaders Ramesh Chennithala, P K Kunhalikutty and V K Ebrahim in the petition , claiming that they too had received bribes from the CMRL. Veena’s company, Exalogic Solutions, CMRL, its MD Sashidharan Karta, chief financial officer K S Suresh Kumar, chief general manager P Suresh Kumar and cashier K M Vasudevan have also been named in the petition.

Needless to say, the verdict has come as a big relief to the Chief Minister and LDF. The Opposition has launched a no-holds-barred campaign of calumny against the Chief Minister and his daughter with an eye on the Puthuppally assembly by-election. The seat had fallen vacant following the death of former Chief Minister and senior congress leader Oommen Chandy.

It must, however, be said that the slander campaign is unlikely to succeed. The Opposition parties had tried a similar campaign against the LDF Government in the 2021 assembly elections as well and failed miserably. CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan has accused the Congress-led UDF of joining hands with the BJP and the investigating agencies under the control of the Central Government to execute a slander campaign against the LDF Government.

Govindan alleged that the central agencies had given ammunition to the Congress campaign by trapping the CPI(M) leaders in false cases in an unabashed political witch-hunt. The latest victim of this stratagem is CPI(M) MLA A C Moideen. The Crime Branch, which probed the Karuvannur cooperative bank scam was unable to find anything adverse against Moideen. Govindan also dared Congress MLA Mathew Kuzhalnadan, the latest baiter of the CM and his family, to answer accusations of land grab and illegal amassing of wealth. The Congress and the UDF have not thought it fit, so far, to accept Govindan’s challenge.

Unfazed by the ED raids, the CPI(M) has decided to extend full support to Moideen. The party believes that the Enforcement directorate is being used politically. Moideen has nothing to do with the Karuvannur cooperative bank scam, the CPI(M) said, adding that, ironically, the ED raided Moideen’s residence on the statement of one of the accused in the scam! The raid has been carried out with the express objective of putting Moideen under a cloud of suspicion.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister made a blistering attack against the Congress accusing it of playing into the hands of the Sangh Parivar. While addressing an election meeting in Puthuppally, the CM referred to the latest developments in Kidangoor a neighbourhood local body where the BJP joined hands with the UDF to oust the LDF from power. Kidangoor, he said, represents the UDF’s political stance and how the party diluted the concept of secularism for political gains. The Chief Minister also accused the Congress MPs of failing to criticize the Union Government’s anti-Kerala policies. (IPA Service)