KOCHI: The controversy surrounding the Kochi Music Foundation intensified on Monday with more and more prominent personalities from the socio-political realm coming out against the organisers of the event including filmmaker Aashiq Abu, singer Shahbaz Aman, and music director Bijibal.
On Kerala Piravi day (November 1, 2019), the body organised the musical event 'Karuna' at Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium at Kadavanthra in Kochi promising that the proceedings from the event will be donated to the Chief Minister's Disaster Relief Fund (CMDRF) to help flood victims.
However, an RTI document shared by state BJP Yuva Morcha secretary Sandeep G Varier on Facebook last week revealed that the Chief Minister's office was yet to receive the funds, sparking a controversy. Other than Abu, Shahbaz and Bijbal, the Kochi Music Foundation also has Abu's wife and actress Rima Kallingal, singer Aman, writer Syam Pushkaran and singer Sithara as its members.
Following the controversy, Ernakulam MP Hibi Eden, through a Facebook post, demanded that Abu should make it public whether he has made payment to the government. Following this, Abu posted the image of the cheque for an amount of Rs 6.22 lakh to the Principal Secretary (Finance), CMDRF.
Date of the Cheque
In his Facebook post, Abu alleged that Hibi 's office asked for free passes for the event. He also wondered on what grounds was Eden calling the event a "fraud" as the organisers have not used any government funds. However, Eden countered Abu's allegations and said the cheque was issued on February 14, 2020, only after the controversy surfaced.
"The date of the cheque is 14.02.2020. It clearly shows that Rs 6.22 lakh was handed over to CMDRF only after the issue has become a controversy. There is no wonder as it is the new trend among Left supporters who are following the path of the disciples of Electricity Minister MM Mani, who remitted the KSEB salary challenge fund to CMDRF only after the issue became a controversy," Eden said.
Meanwhile, District Collector S Suhas has asked KMF to not to use his name as the patron of the Foundation. The District Collector's response came in the wake of the Facebook post by KMF which stated that the District Collector too was the patron of the event.