Congress leader and MLA Mathew Kuzhalnadan has sought the response of Industries Minister P. Rajeeve about the ongoing investigation by the Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs against Exalogic, the IT consultancy owned by T. Veena, daughter of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL), in which the State-run Kerala State Industries Development Corporation (KSIDC) has also come under scanner.
“The three companies were served a notice under section 206 of the Companies Act and they had responded. The investigation is being carried out as the response was not satisfactory. In this situation, the Industries Minister is morally bound to explain the said response to the general public”, Mr. Kuzhalnadan told reporters in Kozhikode on Saturday.
The MLA also questioned why the KSIDC had not demanded 14% of CMRL’s profit, which was its due as a 14% shareholder, especially when the government was in a financial crisis and also what action was taken for non remittance of the profit share. “Did the KSIDC and Industries Department help CMRL hide its unhealthy profit? He asked.
Mr. Kuzhalnadan was the first to come up with serious allegations against Ms.Veena. He has alleged that Exalogic was a ‘paper company’, that its operations were mysterious with a lot of legal violations under its belt. The State Secretariat of Communist Party of India (Marxist) had defended Exalogic at the time, claiming that it was a transparent deal between two companies.
On Saturday, Mr. Kuzhalnadan demanded the Secretariat to respond to the ongoing probe. He also sought a response from Minister for Tourism and Public Works P. A. Mohammed Riyas, Ms. Vijayan’s husband, if the ongoing investigation against Exalogic was usual, in the backdrop of his recent comment that there was nothing unusual about the recent arrest of Youth Congress leader Rahul Mankoottathil.
Mr. Kuzhalnadan said he was not so sure about whether to trust the ongoing probe but hoped for the best. He also welcomed any investigation against him that the State government was preparing for behind the curtains.
