Intensifying the probe in the disproportionate assets case against Congress’s former Excise Minister K Babu, the Kerala Vigilance on Monday examined the bank lockers of his two daughters, questioned his former aide and collected details of the land transactions carried out by one of his ‘binamis’.
The Vigilance, which had the other day frozen five bank accounts of Babu and his wife, started examining the lockers of his two daughters in two banks in Kochi on Monday. The agency had held raids on Saturday at 12 different places including the houses of Babu and people associated with him and had reportedly confiscated large sums of money and several significant documents.
Senior Congress leader Babu, known as a close confidant of former chief minister Oommen Chandy, is facing the charge that he had taken Rs 10 crore bribe from the State’s bar owners for lowering the licence fees for bars. Chandy has already termed the Vigilance action against Babu as part of political score-settlement.
The investigators had received information about the bank lockers of Babu’s daughters during the raids on Saturday. On Monday, Vigilance officials questioned Nandakumar, who was personal assistant to Babu when he was minister. Nandakumar’s wife is said to be running a finance company in Thrippunithura near Kochi.
Vigilance officials have reportedly found that PS Baburam, allegedly a binami of Babu had owned lands in 41 different places and had carried out 27 land transactions in the recent period. The Vigilance is examining whether any of these transactions have any kind of connection with Babu.
Meanwhile, in a determined move to track the assets allegedly amassed by public servants in excess of their known sources of income, Vigilance Director Jacob Thomas has written a letter to the Director General, Income Tax, Kochi seeking details of the deposits – if any – made by Kerala politicians in private financial companies.
The action came in the context of the raids conducted by the IT Department on the branches of a leading Kerala-based finance company last month. The Vigilance has reportedly learned that several political leaders and top bureaucrats have deposited money in private financial companies and cooperative banks.
The Vigilance Director is expected to write to the Cooperative Registrar seeking details of deposits made by such people. As per a report, the Vigilance has received credible information on deposits held by several public servants in financial institutions within the State and outside and certain banks abroad.