THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Ten UDF leaders, including former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and former Finance Minister K M Mani, have every reason to cheer.
The VACB has given them a clean chit in the investigation into allegations of nepotistic appointments during the front’s rule.
Their names have been cleared in the Quick Verification (QV) report prepared by the special investigation team on Saturday to be submitted before the Special Vigilance Court. The bureau has sought some more time from the court to submit the final report. It said the initial probe was in the final phase. The hearing of the case has been postponed to April 10.
The QV report says the allegations are baseless as no persons were appointed in any department with the influence of leaders. It did not find any serious irregularities in the appointments.
The Vigilance had investigated 14 alleged nepotistic appointments carried out during the previous ministry.
It is alleged Chandy’s relative Kunju Illampally was appointed chairman of a board. Former Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala also faced similar charges. Investigators probed leaders who had illegally appointed relatives in government institutions and what criteria had been violated. Other leaders include V S Sivakumar, P K Jayalakshmi, Anoop Jacob, K C Joseph, R Selvaraj, V M Ummer and M Vincent.