Thiruvananthapuram: The nepotism row involving Kerala's Higher Education Minister K T Jaleel seems to have entered the harvesting stage for those who have raised the charges.
KT Jaleel's relative K T Adeeb has submitted an application expressing his willingness to step down from the post of general manager of the Kerala State Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (KSMDFC). Adeeb's application, which also seeks permission to be reinstated in his earlier position in South Indian Bank, was accepted by the director board of the corporation on Monday.
However, a decision on whether Adeeb should be relieved of his responsibilities will be taken by the Cabinet. “We will hand over the application to the government," corporation chairman A P Abdul Wahad said.
Muslim Youth League general secretary P K Firoz, who is spearheading the campaign against Jaleel, said on Monday that the minister would not be let off just because Adeeb had resigned. "Just because the booty was returned does not mean the thief has been absolved," he said. The Youth League had demanded a vigilance probe into the issue. "If this demand is rejected, we will go to the court," Firoz said.
The Congress, too, has aggressively taken up the issue. Malappuram District Congress president V V Prakash said on Monday the Congress would take up the agitation if Jaleel refuses to resign. Senior Congress leaders, including Oommen Chandy and Mullappally Ramachandran, had already demanded the minister's resignation.
Qualification?
Adeeb is Jaleel's nephew, the grandson of his father's brother. The charge, first raised by Muslim Youth League, was that Adeeb, who did not even participate in the interview, was selected violating rules.
Jaleel had countered this by saying that there were no qualified people among those who had attended the interview. However, it was later revealed that at least three candidates had the requisite qualifications and experience. It was also alleged that a new qualification, PGDBA, was inserted very late to favour the minister's relative. It was further alleged that Adeeb had not submitted the PGDBA certificate, a failure for which the same corporation had rejected the application of another candidate.
Earlier, when the controversy erupted, Jaleel had argued that South Indian Bank was a statutory organisation from which the government could recruit officers on deputation. However, the Youth League general secretary said on Monday that the Supreme Court had stated way back in 2003 that scheduled banks, including South Indian Bank, were not statutory organisations. "That way, too, the appointment of Adeeb, an officer with South Indian Bank, was against the law," Firoz said.
Firoz also said that Adeeb had secured an NOC from his parent organisation only after the corporation sent a note to the government recommending him as the general manager.
Jaleel is the second minister of the Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government being caught in nepotism row. In October 2016, just five months after coming to power, then industries minister E P Jayarajan had to resign on a similar charge. However, Jayarajan was reinstated as a minister in August this year after the vigilance and anti-corruption bureau, which probed the case, absolved him of the charges.
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