The Kerala Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau has quizzed former State Finance and law Minister KM Mani, chairman of the Kerala Congress (M), in the case pertaining to the granting of tax relaxation to a private industrial unit at Chingavanam in his native Kottayam district when he was a member of the Cabinet causing losses to the exchequer.
Mani, already facing Vigilance probe in several corruption-related cases, was quizzed for several hours at the Government Guest House at Nattakom, Kottayam on September 13 by a probe team led by a Deputy Superintendent of Police (Vigilance). As per the case, the State had suffered a loss of Rs 1.66 crore because of favour Mani had allegedly given to the company.
Mani rejected the allegation saying the State had suffered no loss because of the tax relaxation granted to the company. He told the Vigilance officials that the tax relaxation was granted as per the instructions of the Secretary, Department of Taxes and the Commercial Taxes Commissioner, adding that all that he had done was to correct a mistake that occurred while applying VAT.
As per the complaint which formed the basis of the case against Mani, tax relaxation was granted with retrospective effect to a private battery manufacturing company in Chingavanam in the State Budget when he was Finance minister. The complaint was lodged by George C Kappan, president of a cooperative society in Mani’s native place, Pala.
The Vigilance which held a quick verification over the complaint registered an FIR naming Mani as first accused on the basis of the finding that here was substance in the complaint. Company owner Benny Abraham is the second accused in the case. The Vigilance had earlier held raids at the company and Abraham’s house.
The bureau in its quick verification had found that an 8.5-percent relaxation was granted in the tax on lead oxide used in the making of batteries in the place of the normal tax between 12.5percent and 13.5 percent. As per the FIR, the loss suffered by the Exchequer due to this relaxation was 1.66 crore.
Mani, heading the KC(M), which had recently left the Congress-led UDF, had resigned last November as Finance and law minister in the then UDF government headed by Oommen Chandy, following an adverse observation made by the High Court in a case pertaining to the allegation that he had taken Rs 1-crore bribe from the State’s bar owners.
Meanwhile, the Vigilance intensified its probe against former Excise minister K Babu of the Congress in a disproportionate assets case by examining whether the contents of the lockers he and his wife had been keeping in two banks had been removed before the raid on his premises and those of his relatives and alleged Binamis earlier this month.
The bureau has reportedly found CCTV footages which showed Babu’s wife Geetha entering and leaving the bank almost a month before the raids. The Vigilance, which suspects that the lockers could have been emptied before the raid, will examine the footages in details to find out whether any contents of the lockers had been removed.