KOLLAM: Former managing director of Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation (KSCDC) K A Ratheesh, who is the first accused in a graft case, has allegedly been given a plum posting in Kerala Institute for Entrepreneurship Development.
He is accused of indulging in corruption while procuring raw cashew nuts between 2006 and 2015 and is facing a CBI probe. When his appointment was pointed out to Cashew Minister Mercykutty Amma in a press meet held here on Saturday, she said she was unaware of it.
“Currently, the CBI inquiry into the corruption case in which Ratheesh is the main accused is progressing. As per my knowledge, any recruitment during this period is not legally possible,” she said.
It is alleged that KSCDC officials violated norms by awarding the contract to supply raw cashew nuts to a private supplier with the intention of cheating the corporation. The HC had ordered a CBI investigation to a petition filed by former Kollam secretary of INTUC K Manoj, who had also brought the issue to the government’s notice.