Kerala orders vigilance probe into CEC Gyanesh Kumar over 2006 KSTP case

Kerala Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala has ordered the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau to investigate Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities during his 2006 tenure as state Public Works Department Secretary. The probe follows a complaint by Congress activist Malayinkeezhu Venugopal alleging that previous vigilance inquiries were closed without proper investigation.

The case centers on the 2006 suicide of Malaysian engineer Lee See Been, project manager for the PATI-BEL consortium executing the World Bank-funded MC Road upgrade worth Rs 215 crore. Lee allegedly left suicide notes naming Kumar and accusing him of harassment and withholding project payments worth Rs 12-13 crore linked to demands for illegal gratification.

“I could not remain a mute spectator to the allegations.”

A preliminary vigilance inquiry was conducted in 2006 but did not progress further. The Home Department has now sought all files related to that earlier inquiry to examine claims of external influence that allegedly derailed the original investigation.

Both the ruling United Democratic Front and opposition Left Democratic Front have welcomed the fresh probe. Former PWD Minister M K Muneer, who held the portfolio in 2006, called for a comprehensive investigation into the circumstances of the engineer's death. CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan said all cases against Kumar in Kerala should be examined.

Separately, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram urged Chief Electoral Officers across states to publicly disclose directives received during the Special Intensive Revision exercise, calling the process illegal. He noted that Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Odisha CEOs have already spoken or resigned.