Vigilance court has ordered further probe in bar bribery case in which Kerala Congress (M) supremo and former Finance Minister KM Mani is an accused.
CPI-M veteran VS Achutanandan demanded a comprehensive probe on Saturday into the alleged attempt to "sabotage" the bar bribery case during the previous Congress-led UDF rule. His reaction came against the backdrop of a vigilance court ordering further probe into the case in which Kerala Congress (M) supremo and former Finance Minister KM Mani is an accused. The CPI(M) leader wanted the probe to look into role of then Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala in "crippling" the case against Mani.
In a statement issued here said Achuthanandan also demanded a criminal case be registered against IPS officer Sankar Reddy, who was the Vigilance Director when a second closure report in the case was filed. Reddy is at present Director of State Crime Records Bureau. "This perhaps would be the first instance of its kind that a Vigilance Director himself had tried to weaken the case and this cannot be encouraged," he said, adding the officer should be arrested and questioned. "...only then truth about the bar bribery case will come out. In the previous Congress led UDF government, which was steeped in corruption, Mani was a king without the crown. The bar case cannot be sabotaged only with the intervention of vigilance director. It is very clear that there had been government intervention to change the course of investigation in the case," he alleged.
Mani, who was part of UDF, has come out of the Front recently following differences with Congress over the bar scam issue. Apparently referring to reports that Mani was warming up to BJP and also to CPI-M led LDF, Achutanandan said the ruling front would not go along with anyone who "is tainted" with corruption. Mani and his party would soon be wiped out from Kerala politics, the veteran leader claimed.
Meanwhile, CPI state secretary Kannam Rajendran said Vigilance Director was not alone behind the conspiracy to weaken the case. Chandy also needed to be investigated, he said adding an independent and just probe was necessary to bring out the truth.
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