Plea before Vigilance Court seeks probe into bribery allegations against Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan, daughter

A plea has been filed before a Kerala Vigilance Court seeking investigation into allegations of bribery and misuse of power by high-ranking public officials in Kerala, including its Chief Minister (CM) Pinarayi Vijayan, in connection with the mining and other business interests of Cochin Mineral and Rutile Ltd (CMRL)..The plea before Special Judge (Vigilance) in Muvattupuzha comes in the wake of an Income Tax report which stated that an "illegal payment" of ₹ 1.72 crores was made by CMRL to Exalogic Solutions Private Limited, an IT firm owned by Veena Thaikandiyil, the daughter of the CM..The petitioner, Gireesh Babu, has alleged that Veena received the money as consideration from CMRL to grant it an undue advantage.Babu alleged that high-ranking public officials including the CM, Leader of Opposition and Congress leader, Ramesh Chennithala and other politicians such as Kunjali Kutty, VK Ibrahim Kunju and A Govindan had also received bribes from CMRL. All of these persons have been arraigned as accused in Babu's petition. .CMRL, which is involved in the commercial production and export of Synthetic Rutile, has already faced backlash for the illegal mining of Ilmenite, the plea added. Such activities have led to public outcries due to environmental hazard concerns, Babu highlighted. .Babu further submitted that it recently came to light that CMRL has engaged in several other illegal activities. It was pointed out that the Income Tax Department has raided its office as well as the residence of its Managing Director in the past in connection with tax evasion. Several documents and records seized during the search portrayed blaring illicit and illegal connections between the accused persons, Babu added.“The finding of the Interim Board for Settlement-II, New Delhi evidently shows offenses under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, to have been committed by the accused persons arrayed herein such that an investigation by the Vigilance Authorities into the matter is warranted,” stated the plea..Referring to the alleged payment of ₹1.72 crore by CMRL to Exalogic Solution, Babu recounted that Settlement Board-II termed this transaction as a bogus transaction as no service was provided by Veena's firm for CMRL..Babu asserted that offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 stand attracted in this case as there has been a misuse of power for monetary benefits..Babu added that even though he had written a complaint to the Vigilance and Anti-corruption Bureau, no action was taken.