KOCHI: The probe into the Palarivattom flyover scam will not end with the arrest of former PWD Secretary TO Sooraj as the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) has tracked the role of a few political leaders in the conspiracy hatched for siphoning off public money from the flyover project. It was a big victory for VACB when the VACB court in Muvattupuzha on Saturday denied bail to four accused – Sooraj, Sumit Goyal, managing director of RDS Project Ltd; MT Thankachan, former additional general manager of Roads and Bridges Development Corporation-Kerala; and Benny Paul, Kitco general manager.
Submitting that the whole scam has political links, VACB stated before the court that Goyal was the axis of the conspiracy and he knew who all played a vital role in the conspiracy, including some political leaders. The probe revealed that the conspiracy was plotted by Goyal to raise fund for overcoming his financial crisis.
“He hatched a conspiracy with Thankachan, Paul and Sooraj for getting a mobilisation advance of `8.25 crore which was actually denied in the pre-bid meeting,” VACB submitted in the court. “After pocketing money, he compromised on the quality of the construction,” it said. A senior officer said the VACB has documents proving that the accused had committed the crime. “If things go as planned, there will be more arrests, including that of a few high-profile persons, in the coming days,” he said.