THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Vigilance team probing the LIFE mission scam arraigned Kerala Chief Minister's former principal secretary M Sivasankar as the fifth accused. The vigilance submitted the FIR in the Vigilance special court in Thiruvananthapuram. In addition to Sivasankar, gold smuggling accused Swpana Suresh, Sandeep Nair, PS Sarith and the builders involved in the housing project Unitac builders and Sane ventures have also been arraigned as accused.
The sleuths decided to arraign Sivasankar as they found that he also got a share of the commission received by Swapna and others for obtaining government nod for the project. The building project was to be implemented in association with UAE based charity organisation Red Crescent, with the help of UAE Consulate in Thiruvananthapuram.
Meanwhile, the Vigilance is interrogating Swapna Suresh at Attakulangara women's jail in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday to seek clarity on the iPhones which were gifted to five persons including the Chief Minister's former principal secretary M Sivasankar as a bribe by Unitac Managing Director Santhosh Eapen. The sleuths will also question Sandeep Nair at Poojappura central jail.
Vigilance officers had collected the bank account details of Swapna Suresh. She has accounts at Axis Bank and SBI in Thiruvananthapuram. The officers are also verifying whether the money deposited in both the banks was from the commissions.
Earlier, Eapen had revealed to Vigilance officers that he had presented five iPhones to Swapna. She had earlier told the investigators that one phone was presented to Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala. Phones were also gifted to Jithu, Praveen and Rajeevan. Rajeevan is an additional protocol officer and he had returned the phone to the secretary (local administration).
Earlier, Vigilance sleuths had concluded that government officers are involved in the alleged scam. The state government announced the vigilance probe last month. Opposition parties had alleged that several political leaders and officers had accepted huge sums as commission for implementing the project.
Life Mission, the state's ambitious housing scheme for the homeless and landless, also has a hospital project at Wadakkanchery. The row erupted after Swapna Suresh, a key accused in the gold smuggling case and a former UAE Consulate employee, revealed to the National Investigation Agency that she had received Rs 1 crore as commission from Unitac, the builder.