Fresh allegations have emerged against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar amid the ongoing controversy over the scale of deletions from electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. The Kerala government has ordered the reopening of a vigilance probe into alleged corruption linked to a road project from 2006, when Kumar was serving as secretary of the state Public Works Department (PWD).

 

What is the case about?

 

The matter is linked to the reported suicide of Malaysian civil engineer Lee See Been in 2006, who was associated with the PATI-BEL consortium tasked with upgrading a road under the Kerala State Transport Project (KSTP). The project involved the reconstruction of the MC Road and was funded by the World Bank. PATI-BEL, a joint venture between PATI of Malaysia and Bhageeratha Constructions, Kochi, was involved in the project.

  

According to media reports, Been, a former chief project officer of the KSTP, had named Gyanesh Kumar in a suicide note. Kumar was serving as the state PWD secretary at the time. The fresh probe was initiated following allegations that the original preliminary investigation conducted in 2006 had been derailed due to external pressure. The Home Department has sought all files relating to the 2006 preliminary inquiry by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB).

 

According to a report by The Hindu, some other allegations against Kumar relate to his tenure as PWD secretary. He was accused of committing serious acts of misconduct in awarding works to contractors of his choice, allegedly in breach of the law and with an intention to enrich himself, causing heavy losses to the government.

 

The construction of the assigned roads was also delayed due to alleged laxity in land acquisition between 2001 and 2006, putting pressure on PATI-BEL and project engineer Been. The delay in the release of funds and payment of bills reportedly pushed the company into a financial crisis and eventually forced Been to take the extreme step.

 

A month after Been’s death in November 2006, Kumar was moved out of the PWD by the then CPI(M)-led government. The allegations are now the subject of the reopened probe.

 

Why has Kerala reopened the probe?

 

Congress leader Malayinkeezhu Venugopal filed a complaint seeking an investigation against Kumar on Saturday.

 

Kerala Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala said he had examined the complaint and found merit in the allegations. He directed the Vigilance director to conduct a thorough inquiry into allegations of external influence in the earlier investigation and take action based on the findings. Chennithala said the allegation that external influence had affected the earlier probe was serious and warranted a detailed investigation.

 

Protests demanding Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation

 

The reopening of the 2006 case comes at a time when Kumar is already facing Opposition criticism over the Election Commission’s handling of electoral rolls and the SIR exercise.

 

On Sunday, Shiv Sena (UBT) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) held a joint protest march in Mumbai, demanding Kumar’s resignation and the scrapping of the SIR of voter lists in Maharashtra.

 

Mumbai has also witnessed protests by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a pressure group founded by activist Abhijeet Dipke. After Mumbai Police denied permission for a protest against the Election Commission and CEC Kumar, the CJP announced that it would undertake a “jail bharo andolan” if necessary.

 

In Delhi, police blocked protests against the ECI and Kumar at Jantar Mantar last week, and detained hundreds of people. Around 700 people were detained on Friday, including former Delhi chief minister Atishi, her Aam Aadmi Party colleague and former Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj, and activists Neha Bora and Yogendra Yadav.