Headlines
Book Kerala excise minister for graft, demands Left
Thiruvananthapuram, April 23
The Left
opposition in Kerala on Thursday demanded that a case be registered
against Excise Minister K. Babu following a new revelation by
whistleblower bar owner Biju Ramesh that a sum of Rs.10 crore was paid
to him as bribe to reduce the annual licence fee for bars in the state.
It
was in October 2014 that Ramesh first revealed that Rs.1 crore was paid
to Finance Minister K.M. Mani. The state government then ordered a
quick verification by the vigilance department and it was followed by a
case registered against Mani.
Ramesh then alleged that it was not
only Mani who had taken bribes but there were other ministers also. On
March 30, he appeared before a magistrate and gave a statement.
A 30-page testimony by Ramesh that says Babu was given Rs.10 crore found its way to the hands of the media on Wednesday.
It says Health Minister V.S. Sivakumar also received money.
Both Babu and Sivakumar, however, were quick to deny ever having anything to do with Ramesh or the bar scam.
On
Thursday, CPI-M state secretary and legislator Kodiyeri Balakrishnan
said the government should immediately order a probe against Babu, the
way it did against Mani.
"The state government is playing a slow
game now. They should immediately order a probe against Babu. Even after
several months, the charge sheet is yet to be filed by the vigilance
department on the probe against Mani," said Balakrishnan.