Kochi: Referring to the vigilance inquiry ordered by Keralam Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar in connection with a 2006 case, Keralam Health Minister K Muralidharan on Monday said that this specific case is not against the CEC but against the former Keralam Public Works Department (PWD) Secretary."There were a lot of complaints against him when he was the government secretary in the State of Kerala. So, this time, more complaints have been raised by some important persons. Only for that reason, the government has taken the case. There is no other way," he said.

Speaking to ANI, he clarified that this is not a politically motivated case and is based on several complaints filed at the time Gyanesh Kumar was acting as the PWD Secretary in the State.

"That is not a politically motivated case. See, when he was the government secretary in Kerala, there were a lot of complaints at that time. Even the ruling party and opposition, both of them gave so many complaints against him. So, the government has taken a case against him. This case is not against the Chief Election Commissioner; this case was against our former government secretary of Kerala," he said.

Keralam Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala had earlier ordered an investigation by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) against Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities during his tenure as the state’s Public Works Department Secretary in 2006. The case pertains to the alleged death by suicide of Malaysian civil engineer Lee See Been, who was associated with the PATI-BEL consortium tasked with upgrading the MC Road under the Keralam State Transport Project (KSTP). The deceased engineer’s “suicide note” had reportedly named Gyanesh Kumar, who was serving as the state PWD Secretary at the time. The fresh probe was initiated following allegations that the original preliminary inquiry conducted in 2006 was derailed due to external pressure. Taking note of the matter, the Home Department has sought all relevant files pertaining to the 2006 VACB preliminary inquiry. Ramesh Chennithala has directed the Vigilance Director to conduct a thorough inquiry into the allegations of external influence and take appropriate action based on the findings, according to the Home Minister’s Office. Keralam Home Minister said the allegation of external influence in the case was serious and warranted a detailed investigation. 

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