Kerala court rejects complaint against CM over corruption in sand mining from Alappuzha coast

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A Kerala court has rejected a complaint alleging corruption by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and various officials, reported news wire PTI. The complaint of a 2019 case in connection with a government order permitting removal of sand from the Thottappally coastal area in Alappuzha district.

Enquiry Commissioner and Special Judge, Kottayam, M Manoj dismissed the complaint saying that prima facie none of the offences, under the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Indian Penal Code, as alleged against the CM and others in the complaint were disclosed, PTI report said.

As per PTI report, "The averments in the complaint do not disclose any offence under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 or under any other law. The complicity of the respondents in any of the alleged offences are not prima facie made out and disclosed as per the averments in the complaint." the judge said in his order dated February 7.

The complaint was moved by the President of the Karimanal Khanana Virudha Ekopana Samithi alleging that atomic mineral sand extracted from Thottappally coastal area in the name of Kerala Minerals and Metals Ltd (KMML) was illegally supplied to the Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd (CMRL).

The complaint sought a vigilance enquiry or probe and also claimed that due to the alleged illegal mineral sand mining, the state suffered a loss of over Rs 2,841 crore. The complainant had further alleged that the government order (GO) permitting KMML to mine the sand was issued on instructions that came from the Chief Minister's Office.

Rejecting the allegations in the complaint, the court said that the government order under challenge was issued in May 2019, following the great floods in the state in 2018, in public interest and to save the life and property of people from flood situations.

According to PTI report, the court also pointed out that the Kerala High Court had upheld the validity of the government order. The court also said that the complainant was the petitioner in the plea challenging the GO in the High Court and at that time he had not contended that the atomic mineral sand excavated from Thottappally and permitted to be removed by KMML was being illegally siphoned off to CMRL. It also noted that the complainant made the present allegations following the ruling of an Interim Settlement Board with regard to payments made by CMRL to the CM's daughter's firm.

Last year, a Malayalam daily reported that CMRL had paid a total of Rs 1.72 crore to Veena, daughter of Kerala CM, between 2017 and 2020.

(With PTI Inputs)