Kerala Cabinet extends tenure of panel probing central agencies

Thiruvananthapuram | The Kerala government on Tuesday extended the tenure of the judicial panel probing charges against central agencies in connection with the gold and dollar smuggling cases.

A cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan decided to extend the tenure of the Justice (Retd) V K Mohan Commission by six months, a statement from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said.

The panel was constituted in 2021 to investigate allegations that central agencies were “derailing the probe” into the gold and dollar smuggling cases.

The tenure of the V K Mohan Commission, which is also investigating the causes of the Tanur boat tragedy in 2023, has been extended for another six months, the statement added.

Among other decisions, the cabinet also approved the establishment of a model degree college in the Wayanad district under the RUSA (Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan) project, offering five new courses.

RUSA is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS), launched in 2013 and operates in mission mode for funding the state government universities and colleges to achieve the aims of equity, access and excellence.

The college will be set up on five acres of land handed over by the General Education Department in Thrissilery village, Mananthavady, the CMO statement added.

CM Vijayan: Bribery row hits ED credibility; seeks PM's intervention

Kozhikode (Kerala) | Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday said bribery allegations against an ED officer in the state have damaged the agency's credibility and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take action to restore public trust in the Enforcement Directorate.

Responding to a query about a case registered by the Kerala Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) in Ernakulam against an assistant director-rank officer of the ED's Kochi office, Vijayan told a press conference that the incident had affected the credibility of the central agency.

He claimed that a "respected bishop" had publicly shared his own experience when the bribery complaint against the ED official came to light.

"In this circumstance, the Prime Minister should intervene. He should examine the issues related to it and take steps to restore the credibility of the agency by reconstituting it. The matters concerning it should be viewed seriously. In my opinion, the Prime Minister should intervene to initiate a detailed probe into the matter," Vijayan said.

He said there had been various complaints against the ED, including talk of financial irregularities.

"However, no one had produced any evidence. Now, it has been caught red-handed. This has severely affected the credibility of the central agency," Vijayan said.

A senior officer of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has recently been booked by the Kerala VACB in a corruption case. The officer, who is part of the ED's Kochi unit, has been named the first accused based on a complaint made by a local businessman.

According to the VACB's remand report submitted to the court, the ED official is the main accused in the case.

So far, three people—including a chartered accountant—have been arrested.

They are accused of demanding a bribe of Rs 2 crore from the businessman in exchange for not naming him in an ED investigation.

ED sources, however, have dismissed the bribery claims, saying they appear to be a deliberate attempt by the businessman to tarnish the agency's image.

The businessman, Aneesh Babu, is reportedly being investigated by the ED for alleged money laundering and has allegedly ignored multiple summonses issued over the past four years.