The Congress in Kerala on Wednesday expressed happiness over former chief minister Oommen Chandy and some of its other senior leaders being exonerated by the CBI in a sexual exploitation complaint, and urged CM Pinarayi Vijayan to tender an apology to them and their family members.
Vijayan had handed over the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) deliberately for insulting five senior party leaders including Chandy, the opposition party alleged.
The state police also could not find any evidence against them though they held inquiries in the solar case three times, it further said.
The sharp reaction from Congress comes in the wake of the CBI having submitted a report in the Chief Judicial Magistrate Court here giving clean chit to Chandy in the sexual exploitation allegation levelled by the prime accused woman in the sensational solar scam.
The CBI submitted the referral report in the court here on Tuesday.
”The CBI has found that it is a case without any evidence. Pinarayi Vijayan should apologise to the leaders including Chandy and their family members,” Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly V D Satheesan told reporters in Kochi.
Congress leaders said the CBI had earlier submitted referral reports in the court giving clean chit to four other Congress leaders who were named as accused in the sexual exploitation case filed by the woman.
”Who would owe the responsibility and give an answer for the pain and humiliation suffered by the leaders and their family members?” Satheesan asked.
The opposition leader also said such attempts to intentionally insult political leaders should not be repeated anymore.
Apparently referring to the allegations levelled by the prime accused in the sensational gold smuggling case against Vijayan and some of his senior party colleagues, Satheesan asked why her complaint was not handed over to the CBI.
Vijayan had claimed the complaint against Chandy was handed over to the central investigating agency as the complainant woman had demanded it.
If so, the complaint against the present CM also merited a probe by the CBI, Satheesan opined.
Kerala PCC president K Sudhakaran also did not hide his happiness in the acquittal of Chandy and said the central agency conducted an honest probe in the case.
Vijayan had thought that Chandy could be trapped through the case, but his intention did not materialise, Sudhakaran alleged while speaking to reporters in Kannur.
Satirically ”thanking” Vijayan for handing over the case to the CBI, the Congress leader said it has actually turned out to be good for Oommen Chandy.
Former defence minister A K Antony and UDF convenor M M Hassan also criticised the LDF government and Vijayan for handing over the case to CBI and said it has now become evident that the solar case was the result of political conspiracy by the ruling front.
Hassan wanted the Chief Minister to apologise in the wake of the central agency’s findings.
Last year, the CBI had taken over the investigation into cases against Chandy, former Union minister K C Venugopal and other politicians related to allegations of sexual exploitation by the accused woman.
The cases against the six persons, including Chandy, were registered over the last few years and investigated by the Crime Branch of the Kerala Police based on a complaint by the woman, an accused in the multi-crore solar panel scam during the UDF government, that she was sexually exploited by them in 2012.
The CPI(M)-led Kerala government had recommended a CBI inquiry into the cases in early 2021.
Sources said that the CBI probe has found that there was no basis for the woman’s allegation against Chandy as there was no evidence to prove that she had gone to the official residence of then Chief Minister on that particular day.
The CBI has also found that it was a fabricated case, the sources claimed.
In a letter to the police commissioner on July 19, 2013, the woman had levelled charges of sexual misconduct and corruption against several Congress and UDF leaders, including Chandy, some of his ministers and two former Union ministers.
