Latest news with #VACB
New Indian Express
6 hours ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Court raps vigilance, DySP for favouring Ajith Kumar
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Vigilance Special Court in Thiruvananthapuram tore into the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) and DySP Shibu Pappachan who inquired into corruption allegations against M R Ajith Kumar, the excise commissioner, for allegedly favouring him. The court also turned down the probe report noting that 'the so-called enquiry was initiated for name's sake, intended to save him from the clutches of the law.' Judge Manoj A issued the order on a petition filed by activist and lawyer Neyyattinkara P Nagaraj seeking dismissal of the vigilance report that favoured Ajith. The judge wrote that the 'enquiry officer' (Shibu), 'contrary to guidelines, prepared a report favouring the suspected officer to exonerate him.' The court said the officer did not follow the Vigilance Manual mandate, particularly since an allegation was raised on amassing wealth, disproportionate assets and constructing a house for crores of rupees.
Hindustan Times
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Kerala court rejects clean chit to ADGP Ajith Kumar
A special court in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday rejected the inquiry report submitted by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) which gave a clean chit to current excise commissioner and former ADGP (law and order) MR Ajith Kumar in a case of alleged amassing of illegal wealth. The court underlined that the allegations against Kumar are 'beyond suspicion' and that they demonstrate a probability of a crime having been committed. (File photo) The ruling by Manoj A, enquiry commissioner and special judge, in the case came on a complaint filed by Neyyattinkara resident P Nagaraj who alleged that the VACB conducted the inquiry against Ajith Kumar in a 'biased, improper, partisan and tainted manner, which caused a miscarriage of justice.' The inquiry report submitted by the VACB had stated that all the allegations against the former ADGP were found to be fake and that there was no evidence to proceed with criminal charges against him. The Vigilance inquiry was ordered by the LDF government in September last year in the backdrop of a complaint filed by then LDF MLA PV Anvar who alleged that the police officer was building a palatial house in Kowdiar in the heart of Thiruvananthapuram using illegally amassed wealth. On Thursday, the special court ruled that the VACB manipulated the enquiry to save Ajith Kumar. 'This is a case where a legally constituted authority instead of collecting facts to reveal the truth manipulated the enquiry to save the officer. Moreover the complainant alleged that no enquiry was conducted about the entire assets of his property. If the complaint is dismissed at the threshold, as argued by the public prosecutor, it would be contrary to the ACT, 1988. So this court cannot dismiss the complaint based on the enquiry report,' the court said. The court underlined that the allegations against Kumar are 'beyond suspicion' and that they demonstrate a probability of a crime having been committed. At the same time, the court said it did not have the power to direct the Director, VACB, to register a case and investigate the offence punishable under PC Act, 1988 (amended in 2018).
The Hindu
17 hours ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Vigilance judge rules Chief Minister has no legal standing to interfere in anti-corruption inquiries
The Left Democratic Front (LDF) government appeared to have suffered a legal and political setback after a special court ruled here on Thursday that the Chief Minister has no legal standing to interfere in anti-corruption inquiries. Inquiry Commissioner and Special Judge, Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB), Thiruvananthapuram, A Manoj, slammed the VACB's contention that its legally disputed preliminary inquiry report exculpating former Additional Director General of Police, Law and Order, M.R. Ajith Kumar, from charges of illegal amassment of wealth, had the Chief Minister's approval. The judge, somewhat scathingly, ruled that the VACB's testimony had no standing in a court of law and contravened the basic principles of jurisprudence. 'What is the role of the so-called Constitutional dignitaries in the inquiry initiated against the high-ranking police officer? It is a fact that the Vigilance department falls under the control of the Chief Minister of the State; it is solely for governance and nothing more. Whether a person has committed an offence, whether an allegation would disclose the commission of a cognisable offence, is to be decided based on the statutory principles and does not depend on the approval of the political executive. Nobody has the right to interfere in the inquiry, whether at the initial stage or the conclusion,' the judge wrote. Mr. Manoj noted pointedly that the complainant, P. Nagaraj, a lawyer and public interest litigant, had testified in court that persons holding high political office and top bureaucrats had conspired to derail the anti-corruption probe. Notably, Mr. Nagaraj had named Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's political secretary, P. Sasi, as one of the respondents in his petition. The court termed the VACB's 'clean chit' to Mr Ajith Kumar as unacceptable. Mr. Manoj observed that the court did not have the power to order the Director, VACB, to register a case against Mr. Ajith Kumar and other respondents and investigate 'the offence punishable under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (amended in 2018). Nevertheless, the judge wrote that section 223 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, empowered the court to examine the complainant and the respondents under oath to hear their case before 'taking cognisance of the anti-corruption charge'. Mr. Manoj said the court had enough proof on record to conduct such an investigation. Moreover, the judge noted that the State Police Chief's investigation into the imputations against Mr. Ajith Kumar had 'prima facie disclosed that the allegations have a vigilance angle in the form of misappropriation and corruption, attracting the provisions of the anti-corruption law'.
The Hindu
7 days ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Operation ‘Secure Land' helps Vigilance unearth entrenched corruption at sub-registrar offices in Kerala
An entrenched coterie of document writers, agents, and officials is making citizens pay more than they ought to for availing themselves of various public services from sub-registrar offices in Kerala, according to the Vigilance and Corruption Bureau (VACB). The agency, which conducted surprise checks at 72 sub-registrar offices across Kerala on Thursday (August 7, 2025) evening in an operation codenamed Secure Land, claimed it found that a corrupt nexus coerced citizens to pay sizeable backhanders for availing themselves of basic and critical services such as registration of various documents, including those concerning immovable properties such as land and buildings. 'The corrupt network ensured that citizens who approached the sub-registrar offices, dodging the agent network, faced delays and rejection of their petitions on flimsy grounds', an official said. Loan sharking Investigators said the registration of sale deeds was a significant avenue of corruption. The said loan sharks, chary of the Kerala Prohibition of Charging Exorbitant Interest Act, 2012, routinely masked their large transactions with debtors as sale agreements. 'The loan shark will include the principal and exorbitant interest as a legitimate pre-sale advance for the debtors' land and back out of the registered agreement once they recover their investment. Hence, the volume of sale deeds registered at sub-registrar offices is unusually high to circumvent the money-lending regulatory laws', an official said. VACB investigators said real estate transactions were a vast source of graft. For instance, the nexus demanded money from individual citizens and big-time builders for the legal transfer of ownership of land, executing sale deeds and lease agreements. Officials said the surprise raids revealed that the agents sought cash from citizens for verification of their documents and issuing certified copies of registered documents. They said the corrupt nexus often closed a blind eye to the 'fraudulent under-valuation' of real estate, particularly properties for which the government has not fixed a fair value, to help transactors save on stamp duty. Agents and document writers collected hefty bribes for assisting concerned parties to avoid tax, thereby causing considerable loss to the public exchequer by undercutting the State's revenue. Money seized The raids resulted in the confiscation of ₹1,46,375 from agents working in the jurisdiction of seven sub-registrar offices in the State. The VACB also seized ₹9,65,905 from 19 officials and document writers. However, officials said the seizures were just the tip of the iceberg. 'A bulk of the graft, including commissions for agents and document writers, was made through UPI channels', an official said.
Time of India
31-07-2025
- Time of India
Microfinance fraud: Complete probe in three months, Kerala HC tells vigilance
Kochi: High court has directed the vigilance special investigation team to complete the probe into the alleged microfinance fraud involving SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan and others within three months. Justice K Babu issued the directive while considering a petition filed in 2020 by M S Anil of Cherthala, seeking a thorough and effective vigilance investigation by a special team led by an honest and efficient officer. Initially, the investigation was headed by J Himendranath IPS, and upon his transfer, it was assigned, with the court's permission, to S Sasidharan IPS, superintendent of police, VACB, central range, Ernakulam. Sasidharan has now been transferred to the post of assistant director (administration), KEPA. The vigilance director informed HC that the probe could either remain with Sasidharan or be handed over to the incumbent at VACB central range. The court noted that Sasidharan had been handling the case since Nov 2024 and that the investigation was at its final stage. Sasidharan himself submitted that he could complete the probe within three months. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Hi Tabbola Undo Accordingly, HC directed the state govt to issue necessary orders entrusting the investigation to Sasidharan. The case, originally registered in 2016, concerns the alleged misappropriation of Rs 15.85 crore in govt loans disbursed over eight instances between 2003 and 2014 under a microfinance scheme intended to benefit members of marginalised communities through the SNDP Yogam. The allegations include collusion between SNDP Yogam officials and former MDs of Kerala State Backward Classes Development Corporation (KSBCDC).
