Thiruvananthapuram: A Vigilance special court here on Friday ordered a preliminary investigation into the allegation that former Vigilance director Shanker Reddy and Vigilance SP R. Sukesan had tried to sabotage the bar bribery case against former finance minister K.M. Mani. Inquiry Commissioner and Special Judge (Vigilance) A. Badaruddin directed the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) to complete the probe within 45 days and submit the report. The case was posted to Nov.11.
The court maintained that during the course of investigation, Shanker Reddy had sent a few letters to Sukesan, who was the investigating officer of the case, to negate the findings of the latter, which were likely to have implicated Mr Mani. In a statement submitted before the court in this regard on Tuesday, the VACB also maintained that Sukesan had decided to refer the case obeying the instructions of his superior officer Shanker Reddy. Considering these, the court ordered the preliminary investigation to ascertain the truth of the allegation.
The court maintained during the arguments that prima facie no alterations could be found in the case diary. Activist Paichira Navaz filed the petition and advocate M. Rahul appeared for him. According to the Vigilance court order, a letter written by Shanker Reddy to Sukesan on December 23, 2015 negates certain findings of Sukesan which were likely to make Mani criminally liable. It further said that on December 26, 2015, Shanker Reddy sent another letter to Sukesan stating that the statement of key witness Ambili (driver of bar owner Biju Ramesh) should be disbelieved.
The order also said that Shanker Reddy wrote another letter to Sukesan on January 6, 2016 which seriously negates the findings of Sukesan regarding oral, documentary and scientific evidence for Kerala Bar Owners Association president Raj Kumar Unni allegedly paying a bribe of '10 lakh to Mani at the latter's official resident. On January 11, 2016 also Shanker Reddy sent a letter to Sukesan negating certain findings which were likely to have implicated Mani.
