Muvattupuzha: The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau which is probing the irregularities in the construction of the Palarivattom flyover is against granting bail to the four arrested so far. It has cited the involvement of politicians in the scam which ultimately resulted in the poor construction of the bridge as a ground to to refuse bail to the accused in custody. The investigators made a submission in this regard at the Vigilance court here.
The accused might destroy evidence with politicians’ help if granted bail. The accused have remained non-cooperative during all three days in custody, the probe team has told the Vigilance Court.
The court is set to rule on bail application moved by all accused, including TO Suraj, the former secretary of the Public Works Department (PWD). The Vigilance lawyer also cited Supreme Court rulings when considering bail in anti-corruption cases.
The court said it had to analyse certain documents before coming to a decision.
Political angle
The defence side claimed that Suraj was merely following ministerial orders. It even alleged a political conspiracy to frame the former PWD minister. Suraj’s lawyer claimed he was implicated in the case as part of this ploy.
The Vigilance retorted, saying Accountant General’s audit report points to irregularities in financial deals associated with the construction. There is evidence to Suraj’s abuse of power in granting Rs 8.25 crore to the contractor. The deal was signed despite the failure of RDS and Nagesh Consultancy to provide necessary documents proving expertise.
The defence even tried to put the blame squarely on poor workmanship.
A faulty bush installation on one of the 19 pillars caused the damage to the bridge. This can be easily rectified, the defence argued.
However, the Vigilance argued that all pillars were faulty and the entire bridge had cracks.
The other three accused in the case are Sumit Goel, MD of RDS Project Ltd which constructed the flyover; MT Thankachan, former additional general manager of Roads and Bridges Development Corporation of Kerala Limited (RBDCK); and Benny Paul, joint general manager of KITCO.
Both sides completed their arguments yesterday.
Reopening delayed
Meanwhile, the bridge is unlikely to reopened anytime soon as the prescribed repairs are delayed. As the report of the IIT Madras is awaited the official formalities ahead of the repair are yet to get going.
The IIT team had promised to release report by August 26. It however sought more time for detailed analysis of the bridge’s central span. No fresh deadline has also been given to it for the submission of report.
Though various organisations and political leaders have requested the reopening of the bridge for light vehicles, the government can't take a call on it with the nod of experts. The government is wary as lives are at risk if the weak bridge or any part of it is reopened in haste.
Anyway there is good news for public as the construction of the nearby Vyttila bridge is expected to be completed by December.
