Keralam Home Minister Orders Vigilance Probe Into Bribery Claims Against CEC Gyanesh Kumar

Keralam Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala has directed the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau to examine fresh bribery allegations against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The complaint involves a road construction project carried out under the Kerala State Transport Project roughly two decades ago when Mr. Kumar worked as the Public Works Department Secretary.

The Allegations

A contractor named Sajan filed the complaint, alleging that Mr. Kumar demanded a bribe of ₹2 crore to release payments for completed work. The complainant stated that approved bills worth about ₹17 crore were withheld, causing financial trouble for the consortium PATI-BEL and its workers. According to the complaint, project engineer Lee See Been stated that Mr. Kumar refused to release cheques without a bribe. Mr. Sajan also claimed that the payment delays and bribe demands contributed to Lee's suicide in 2006, adding that Lee mentioned Mr. Kumar in a suicide note.

Political Backdrop

This development takes place while the Congress and other Opposition parties protest against the CEC regarding the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls across the country. The Home Minister ordered a preliminary inquiry after receiving legal opinion, building on an earlier Vigilance probe ordered on October 4 following a complaint by KPCC leader Malayinkeezhu Venugopal regarding corruption in upgrading the MC Road under the same project.

Context

Allegations involving infrastructure projects and senior government officials from past decades are often referred to anti-corruption bureaus for verification through preliminary inquiries before any formal cases are registered. The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau evaluates such complaints to check if enough grounds exist to take further legal steps.