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Row over graft allegations against Kerala CM’s daughter
While the Congress demanded a judicial probe into the allegations, the BJP sought an explanation from Vijayan
Kochi: The Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday attacked Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan over allegations that his daughter was involved in suspicious financial transactions to the tune of ₹1.7 crore between 2017 and 2020.
While the Congress demanded a judicial probe into the allegations, the BJP sought an explanation from Vijayan and the ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist).
The political row erupted after Malayala Manorama, citing income tax department’s order, reported that Vijayan’s daughter T Veena and her firm received payments to the tune of ₹1.72 crore in the three-year period from a Kochi-based private company even though no services were rendered by her firm.
Veena and her firm Exalogic Solutions Pvt Ltd had signed an agreement with the Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) in 2017 for giving information technology (IT), marketing consultancy and software services.
Recently, the New Delhi bench of the Income Tax Interim Settlement Board ruled that the payment could not be claimed as a “business expenditure” of CMRL as the services were “not rendered” by Exalogic Solutions. The board in its order dated June 12 said that the payments were made through banking channels to persons “connected with a prominent person”.
“The department has demonstrated with clinching evidence the fact that applicant has made payments through banking channels to persons connected with a prominent person and thereby claim it as a deductible expense and by claiming to compensate a service which has not been rendered or received,” the board said in its order.
In January 2019, the Income Tax department had conducted searches and raids at the offices of CMRL and residences of its managing director (MD) and other key officials, and found that there was tax evasion by exaggerating the expenses of the firm. The I-T department further noted that payments were made to “prominent politicians, media houses, police officers and trade union leaders”.
Chief minister Vijayan and Veena, who is married to Kerala’s public works department and tourism minister PA Muhammad Riyaz, have not reacted to the allegations yet.
Meanwhile, the opposition parties in Kerala mounted pressure on the chief minister and the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government over the allegations.
“My personal view is that there should be a judicial inquiry into the allegations because the LDF government often makes deals with the Centre,” Congress state president K Sudhakaran said. “There should be an impartial judicial inquiry.”
BJP state chief K Surendran said the chief minister and his party, the CPI(M), should explain the alleged transactions.
“Why was this money received and what needs were fulfilled in exchange for the money? What is the deal? If the chief minister does not clarify, will his party demand an explanation from him? The people want to know,” Surendran said, while talking to reporters.
