KOCHI: CPM Central Committee member Thomas Isaac MLA on Wednesday gave a statement to the Solar Commission that Saritha S Nair, accused in Solar scam, maintained close connection with Chief Minister Oommen Chandy. He submitted some documents and electronic data before the Justice G Sivarajan commission, which is conducting inquiry on the scam.
Isaac said that Saji Cherian, CPM Alappuzha district secretary, has telephone records of the conversation with Saritha in which she admitted about her connection with Chandy. Apart from Chandy, Saritha has named some other important names.
Isaac also submitted documents collected through RTI substantiating about the money donated by Saritha to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. According to Isaac, Sreedharan Nair, a victim of Solar scam,had earlier revealed that he had seen Saritha donating a cheque of Rs 2 lakh to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund on July 9, 2013. However, Chandy had denied it. The RTI document submitted by Isaac revealed that a cheque of Rs 2 lakh was donated to the Chief Minister’s relief fund. Isaac also submitted details of an e-mail sent by Saritha to Sreedharan Nair in July 2013.
He deposed before the commission that Chandy was aware of the fraudulent activities carried out by Saritha’s business firm.
Similarly, Isaac testified that the then Home Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan helped Saritha in evading the arrest.
According to him, the FIR against Saritha was registered on March 20, 2014. However, she was arrested on June 3, 2014.
Keep Solar Case in Abeyance: HC
Kochi:The Kerala High Court on Wednesday ordered the Pathanamthitta Judicial First Class Magistrate Court to keep in abeyance further proceedings in the solar case pending before it. The court passed the order on a petition filed by R Sreedharan Nair, a complainant in the solar case, seeking to appoint a special prosecutor. The police registered cases on the basis of the complaint by Nair. He stated that Tenny Joppan, former personal staff in Chief Minister’s office, along with Saritha Nair and Biju Radhakrishnan, had defrauded him of Rs 40 lakh.