THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Lok Ayukta division bench on Wednesday will hear the review petition challenging its own decision to constitute a full bench to judge the case pertaining to the alleged misuse of the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF).
The review petition will be heard at 12 noon, while the full bench will hold the court two hours later. The matter has got huge political ramifications on the account of CM Pinarayi Vijayan being one of the respondents in the case.
Petitioner R Sasikumar had filed the review petition saying that it was a Lok Ayukta full bench headed by Pius Kuriakose in 2019 that decided in favour of conducting a probe on the matter. Though the division bench consented to hear the case before convening the full bench to take up the CMDRF case, the judges had in-store searing remarks against the petitioner.
The judges criticized the petitioner for his remarks questioning their integrity and asked why he approached them in the first place if he did not have faith in them. The bench also asked the petitioner to maintain modesty in his responses.
Sasikumar had alleged that the judges were being influenced after the division bench reserved its verdict on the case for about one year. He had also criticized the judges attending the Iftar party organized by the CM recently.
Reacting to the development, Sasikumar stuck to his guns and said by attending the Iftar party organized by the CM, the judges have contravened the guidelines of the Supreme Court. “According to ethics laid down by the Supreme Court, 'A Judge shall not accept gifts or hospitality except from his family, friends'. By attending the party hosted by the CM the judges have overlooked the ethics,” he said.
The decision to constitute a three-member bench to judge the case, was announced on Friday after Lok Ayukta Cyriac Joseph and Upa Lok Ayukta Harun-ul-Rashid developed 'difference of opinion' regarding the merits of the allegations raised and whether the particular decision of the members of the cabinet can be investigated under the Kerala Lok Ayukta Act. Apart from Cyriac and Harun, the new bench will also have Upa Lok Ayukta Babu Mathew P Joseph on board.
The complaint filed by Sasikumar in 2018 alleged that the decision to provide financial assistance to the families of the late leaders, NCP's Uzhavoor Vijayan and former Chengannur MLA K K Ramachandran Nair, and policeman P Praveen, who died in a road accident while escorting former CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, smacked of favouritism. He had also alleged that the matter of providing assistance was not included in the agenda of the cabinet meeting and demanded the ouster of the CM and the ministers concerned.
The hearing in the case was held from February 5, 2022, to March 18, 2022. However, the verdict was delayed for almost a year following which the petitioner approached the High Court, which directed him to approach the Lok Ayukta instead.
As per the Kerala Lok Ayukta Act of 1999, the verdict of the anti-graft ombudsman is legally binding on the government. The LDF government, meanwhile, had brought an ordinance tweaking the powers of the Lok Ayukta to remove a public servant from office. However, the ordinance is yet to get the assent of Governor Arif Mohammad Khan.
The same Lok Ayukta bench had earlier found former higher education minister K T Jaleel guilty on charges of nepotism and abuse of power in appointing his relative as general manager of Kerala State Minorities Development Corporation. Following this, Jaleel had to resign from the cabinet.