SNC LAVALIN CASE
The Lavalin case relates to irregularities in the award of contract to the Canadian Company for renovation of three hydrel project in 1998, When Pinarayi Vijayan,now state secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) was the power Minister, Mr Vijayan is an accused.
The CBI says the then KSEB officials and other accused had hatched a criminal conspiracy among themselves and with the senior vice president of SNC-Lawalin in awarding the contract for renovation and modernization of the Pallivasal, Sengulam and Panniyar hydro electric projects at a higher rate, violations and normal procedures and thereby causing a huge loss to the KSEB and the government.
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| pinaray vijayan |
Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Kerala state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan, who is among the accused in the Rs.374 crore SNC Lavalin scam, Saturday earned a major reprieve when the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said there is no evidence to prove that he had made any financial gains.
The CBI's stand came in an affidavit filed in the CBI court after the original petitioner in the case, 'Crime' editor T.P.Nandakumar approached the court to find out the status of the case after Vijayan secured bail December last year. The affidavit also pointed out that there was no basis of the allegations leveled by the petitioner that Vijayan had traveled to Singapore several times.
Vijayan, who is currently on a trip to the Middle East, said that the truth has finally come out and he was happy about it. "It is now clear that a section of the media was out spreading canards about me after joining hands with vested interests and that is why my party stood solidly behind me," he said. The case had generated huge interest because it was the first time ever that a CPI-M politburo member had to appear before a court in a corruption case. The CBI filed charge sheets against nine accused, including Vijayan, in June last year. (2010) Vijayan, as the then state power minister, had inked the final agreement in 1997 for renovating three power plants in the state.
The CBI submitted before a CBI special court that the further investigation ordered by the court in all aspects of the Lavalin case, relating to alleged graft in connection with renovation of three hydel projects in Kerala in the 1990s, is in progress and a report would be submitted at the earliest.Canadian multinational company SNC Lavalin had been given the contract to renovate the 3 hydel projects at Pallivasal, Sengulam and Panniar in Kerala.
In an affidavit filed in the CBI special court today, CBI rejected the contention raised in a petition by crime magazine editor T P Nandakumar seeking to investigate the role of former minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, who was a member in Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) and Sivadasa Menon, a former finance minister, in awarding the contract.The investigating agency had filed chargesheet in the case on June 11, 2009 listing K Mohanachandran, former Principal Secretary, Power department and 8 others including former Power Minister and CPI(M) State Secretary, Pinarayi Vijayan as accused.The allegation relates to showing undue favour to Lavalin company in the matter of awarding it the contracts for renovation and modernisation of the three hydel projects.
Vijayan, who is currently on a trip to the Middle East, said that the truth has finally come out and he was happy about it. "It is now clear that a section of the media was out spreading canards about me after joining hands with vested interests and that is why my party stood solidly behind me," he said. The case had generated huge interest because it was the first time ever that a CPI-M politburo member had to appear before a court in a corruption case. The CBI filed charge sheets against nine accused, including Vijayan, in June last year. (2010) Vijayan, as the then state power minister, had inked the final agreement in 1997 for renovating three power plants in the state.
The CBI submitted before a CBI special court that the further investigation ordered by the court in all aspects of the Lavalin case, relating to alleged graft in connection with renovation of three hydel projects in Kerala in the 1990s, is in progress and a report would be submitted at the earliest.Canadian multinational company SNC Lavalin had been given the contract to renovate the 3 hydel projects at Pallivasal, Sengulam and Panniar in Kerala.
In an affidavit filed in the CBI special court today, CBI rejected the contention raised in a petition by crime magazine editor T P Nandakumar seeking to investigate the role of former minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, who was a member in Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) and Sivadasa Menon, a former finance minister, in awarding the contract.The investigating agency had filed chargesheet in the case on June 11, 2009 listing K Mohanachandran, former Principal Secretary, Power department and 8 others including former Power Minister and CPI(M) State Secretary, Pinarayi Vijayan as accused.The allegation relates to showing undue favour to Lavalin company in the matter of awarding it the contracts for renovation and modernisation of the three hydel projects.
Prof. John Kurakar
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