Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government is set to grant permission to prosecute the state president of the Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC), R Chandrasekharan, alongside other accused individuals, in connection with a multi-crore cashew import scam.
The previous Pinarayi Vijayan-led administration had rejected the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) request for prosecution sanction on three separate occasions after the federal agency filed its chargesheet.
This persistent refusal has landed the Additional Chief Secretary of the Industries Department, AP Mohammed Hanish, in legal trouble, with the High Court initiating contempt of court proceedings against him. The senior bureaucrat has been ordered to appear before the High Court on Monday to provide a formal explanation.
Although the government has until July 2 to officially communicate its decision regarding the sanction, there is a strong possibility that Hanish may inform the court of the dynamic shift during Monday's hearing. The contempt action stems directly from the bureaucrat's failure to grant the prosecution sanction despite three explicit directives from the court.
The previous Vijayan government had maintained that the CBI had only uncovered procedural irregularities and that criminal prosecution could not be justified under those circumstances. However, with the High Court tightening its stance, the newly formed United Democratic Front (UDF) government has shifted its position to allow the legal proceedings to move forward, even though the primary accused is an INTUC leader.
Chief Minister VD Satheesan has taken a firm stance that the High Court's directives must be strictly followed. The CBI's investigation revealed widespread corruption and the misappropriation of funds worth millions during the import of raw cashew nuts by the Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation between 2006 and 2015. The agency has named the Corporation's former chairman, R Chandrasekharan, and its former managing director, K A Ratheesh, as the primary accused in the case.
The Left government's previous efforts to shield the INTUC leader had raised eyebrows even within the CPM. Critics pointed out that Chandrasekharan had aligned himself with the Left administration in the case of ASHA workers' issue, prompting allegations that the denial of prosecution sanction was a political quid pro quo.
The controversy had grown so intense that several Congress party leaders felt compelled to publicly state that the INTUC's political positions did not represent those of the Congress. Paradoxically, during the internal leadership friction within the Congress party over the choice of Chief Minister, Chandrasekharan had firmly backed Satheesan.