Kerala HC orders CBI probe into 'wealth' of CM Vijayan's chief principal secretary

Kochi, April 11 (IANS) In a jolt to K.M. Abraham, the chief principal secretary to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and also a former chief secretary, the Kerala High Court on Friday ordered a CBI probe into his wealth.

Reacting to the court's order, Abraham said he "wholeheartedly welcomes" the CBI probe.

The probe was ordered based on a petition seeking a CBI investigation filed by popular public activist Joemon Puthenpurackal.

Speaking to the media, Puthenpurackal said Abraham had been trying to conceal his assets for a long time, and he did his best to wriggle out, but the High Court observed the merits of the petition and directed for a CBI probe.

“He will now become another Sivasankar (the now-retired former principal secretary of CM Vijayan who was in jail on two occasions) as Abraham was misusing his positions to thwart any probe,” said Puthenpurackal.

Abraham, apart from being the chief principal secretary to CM Vijayan, is also the CEO of the state-run Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB).

Reacting to the court's order, Jacob Thomas, the former Vigilance Director, said, "The Vigilance Court ordered a probe against Abraham and me being in office in 2016. I went ahead with the probe, but he did everything to stop it using his powers, as he was holding a key post then. The Chief Minister now has a job to do, as no one knows why Abraham continues to be employed in a key post. The CM has to find answers,” said the former director General of Police

The petitioner, Puthenpurackal, was working on this case for nearly a decade and, over the years, was able to produce documents to prove that Abraham has acquired assets from more than his known source of income.

According to Puthenpurackal, Abraham owns assets in Mumbai, Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam. Besides, he has been paying monthly loan installments, which are more than his monthly income.

Abraham, 66, retired as the Chief Secretary in December 2017 and since then has been closely associated with the office of CM Vijayan.

Abraham is more known for his tenure as a member of the Securities and Exchange Board of India from 2008 to 2011.

It was during his tenure at SEBI, he exposed the financial irregularities at Sahara India, which culminated in the Supreme Court upholding his judgment as a member. As of March 31, 2021, SEBI had recovered Rs 15,473 crore out of Rs 23,000 crore from the Sahara Group of Companies (SHICL and SIRECL), making this the biggest penalty levied in the financial markets to date.

He was in charge of the secondary markets, investigation and surveillance divisions and the international affairs division during his tenure at SEBI.

Incidentally, Puthenpurackal is also known for the position that he took in the 1992 Sister Abhaya case. Two Catholic priests and a nun were found guilty of the murder of Sister Abhaya and sentenced to life after 28 years. He formed an action council as he felt Sister Abhaya was murdered and fought the case succesfully.

--IANS

sg/dpb