THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a major setback for the Vigilance and Anti- Corruption Bureau and ADGP M R Ajith Kumar, the Vigilance special court here has dismissed the report filed against the officer by the anti-graft agency that had probed the allegations of amassing of wealth and abuse of power against him.
While passing its verdict on the petition filed by lawyer Neyyattinkara P Nagaraj, who had sought a dismissal of the Vigilance clean chit, the court observed that the complainant had produced documents and prima facie there was merit in his complaint.
The court also observed that the Vigilance team did not conduct a fair probe into the allegation and decided to investigate on its own. The complainant, Nagaraj, has been directed to give his statement on August 30. The statements of the witnesses will be recorded after that, the court ruled.
The Vigilance that conducted a preliminary inquiry on allegations of amassment of wealth had filed a report that said the officer did not commit any cognizable offence, and hence there was no need for further action against him. However, the complainant petitioned the court saying that the Vigilance had conducted an inquiry in a biased manner favouring the officer by bypassing rules.
The complainant had alleged that the inquiry against the ADGP was conducted by officers junior to him, and they did not dig deeper into the allegations, not verified documents that proved his culpability. It was the ADGP’s purchase of a parcel of land in Kowdiar and a flat in Pattom, which had come under scanner after the former Nilambur legislator PV Anvar alleged that the senior cop had amassed wealth beyond his known source of income.