Kottayam/Malappuram (Kerala): Youth Congress (YC) activists staged protest marches to district collectorates across Kerala, demanding the resignation of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in connection with the SFIO chargesheet against his daughter in an alleged “illegal payment” scandal.
The protests, held in several locations, including Malappuram and Kollam, led to clashes with police personnel deployed to prevent the agitating YC activists—the youth wing of the Congress—from proceeding.
Following the scuffles, several activists were taken into custody and removed from the protest sites, according to visuals aired by TV channels.
Congress MLA Chandy Oommen led a similar protest to the Kottayam collectorate, where he and the YC activists sat on the road, obstructing traffic and shouting slogans against Vijayan.
Some of the protestors were later removed by the police.
Both the Congress and the BJP have been demanding Vijayan’s resignation ever since reports emerged that the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) had named his daughter, Veena T, in the “illegal payment” case involving her now-defunct IT firm, Exalogic, and the private mining company Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd (CMRL).
Defending the CM, the CPI(M) has dismissed the SFIO’s move as “politically motivated.” To date, neither the Chief Minister nor his daughter has responded to the reports, which claim that the SFIO investigation found she received Rs 2.70 crore from the private mining company without providing any services.
The reported SFIO action comes nearly a week after the Kerala High Court dismissed a petition filed by Congress MLA Mathew Kuzhalnadan seeking a vigilance probe against Vijayan over alleged financial transactions between CMRL and Exalogic.
The HC dismissed the plea, stating that the MLA had “failed” to present facts before the vigilance court that would constitute an offence of corruption against the CM, his daughter, and her firm.
According to reports, the SFIO investigation has uncovered a Rs 182 crore financial fraud within the mining company, involving several other accused as well.
The fraud was reportedly carried out by inflating non-existent expenses and generating fake bills. PTI HMP SSK HMP SSK ROH
