Thiruvananthapuram: The Lok Ayukta has quashed the graft case against PWD Minister V. K. Ebrahim Kunju following the failure of former forest minister K. B. Ganesh Kumar to produce the required evidence. Mr Kumar had alleged that Mr Kunju had amassed unaccounted wealth, but he never turned up before the Lok Ayukta to depose.
Mr Kumar had said that the minister, his family members and two personnel staff members, special private secretary M. Abdul Raffi and assistant private secretary A. Nasimuddin, had amassed properties disproportionate to their known sources of income through corruption in road works and related projects. Thrissur native George Vattukulam had filed a complaint citing the allegations raised by Mr. Kumar at a public function in Palakkad against the minister and his office. Mr. Kumar made the same allegations in the Assembly also. The Lok Ayukta issued a notice to Mr. Kumar on January 5.
Mr. Kumar had sought two months’ time to submit the evidence saying that he needed to obtain some more documents under the Right to Information Act. Admitting the plea, the court allowed him three months’ time and directed Mr. Kumar to produce the evidence by March 30. He failed to do so giving force to the PWD minister’s defamation case against Mr. Kumar to the tune of Rs 5 crore.
