Thiruvananthapuram: The state government has granted permission to the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau to register a case and conduct a formal investigation against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in connection with the PATI-BEL corruption case.

Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala gave the green light to probe the complaint, which alleges multi-crore corruption tied to the MC Road development project during Gyanesh Kumar’s tenure as Public Works Secretary. The development assumes special significance as it comes hot on the heels of nationwide agitations targeting Gyanesh Kumar over ongoing voter list revisions.

The case stems from the 2006 suicide of Lee See Bin, a Malaysian engineer who served as the chief project manager for PATI-BEL, an Indo-Malaysian joint venture contracted for the MC Road project. In a recently lodged complaint, V O Sajan, a native of Chadayamangalam who supplied materials to the firm, alleged that Gyanesh Kumar had demanded a ₹2-crore bribe from the late engineer. Sajan claimed that the official's refusal to clear legitimate bills pushed Lee See Bin into severe mental distress, ultimately leading him to take his own life in Malaysia.

Following a preliminary inquiry into the complaint, the Vigilance initially sought the Home Department’s sanction to register a formal case. The Home Department subsequently granted the sanction after receiving a favourable legal opinion in the matter.

Legal nod paves way for vigilance probe
In his legal opinion, Additional Director General of Prosecution (Vigilance) G Saseendran advised that a case could indeed be registered despite the incident dating back to 2006. The opinion explicitly noted that statements made by the deceased while alive are legally admissible as primary evidence in court, clearing the final hurdle for the Vigilance to formally proceed with the investigation.