KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Thursday sought the state government’s view on a petition from the Managing Director of the Water World Tourism Company seeking to quash the FIR registered by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau(VACB) in connection with the alleged illegal filling of wetland for constructing a road to the Lake Palace resort belonging to former Minister Thomas Chandy.
According to the petitioner Mathew Joseph, the bund road having a length of one km and width of 3 m had been strengthened by gravelling using MP Fund for the benefit of the public. The road is now vested with the local authority and is a public road. The property has no direct or immediate frontage to the Valiyakulam-Zero Jetty Road, with a paddy field coming in between, the petition said.
As per the VACB case, the accused conspired and reclaimed paddy fields in violation of the provisions of the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act 2008 and constructed the Valiyakulam - Zero Jetty Road through privately- owned paddy field in Karuveli paddy fields and got road access to the resort.