Kochi: The contract for the construction of the Life Mission housing complex in Wadakkanchery that had received foreign assistance of Rs 20 crore was only the beginning and more was to follow, Unitac Managing Director Santosh Eapen, the first accused in the case related to the project being investigated by the CBI, has said.
Santosh, in his statement, said that Khalid, an Egyptian who worked as an accountant at the UAE Consulate in Thiruvananthapuram, had assured that more foreign funds would be made available if the construction work at the Wadakkanchery project turned out to be good.
The CBI has found evidence in the Unitac’s office that Rs 3.50 crore of the commission amount was handed over to Khalid in Thiruvananthapuram after the company got the construction contract. The amount was paid in foreign currency.
However, the investigating agencies have not been able to confirm if the Rs 1 crore found by the NIA in the secret bank locker of Swapna Suresh, the main accused in the gold smuggling case, was a commission that Unitac had paid for the Wadakkanchery project.
On the instructions of Swapna Suresh, Santosh Eepan had deposited Rs 75 lakh in the account of Isomonk, the company run by Sandeep Nair and P S Sarith, who are also accused in the gold smuggling case.
The CBI will soon conduct an inspection with the help of engineering experts to find out how much of the Rs 20 crore provided as assistance by Red Crescent has actually been spent by Unitac on the flat complex in Wadakkanchery.
Santosh Eapen said he realised late the fact that the permission of the central government had not been obtained to receive money for the Wadakkanchery project from the foreign charitable organisation directly in the account of Unitac.
Khalid and Swapna Suresh knew the details of foreign funds that were brought to Kerala for a commission under the guise of assistance for flood relief operations.
As it is not certain if Khalid can be brought to India for questioning, the CBI will approach the court seeking the custody of Swapna Suresh to interrogate her.
Channel’s disclosure will also be investigated
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is planning to conduct a detailed investigation into the revelation made by a channel that the Unitac owner had paid commission for the Wadakkanchery project.
Chief Minister’s media advisor John Brittas had revealed through a channel that the commission was handed over by the Unitac owner to the UAE Consulate employee Khalid Mohammad Ali Shoukri near a coffee shop close to Manmohan's bungalow, which houses ministers, in Kowdiar in Thiruvananthapuram. This was confirmed by Finance Minister Thomas Isaac.
The investigation team has obtained details of Unitac owner Santosh Eapen’s phone location to confirm that he was there on the day mentioned, but there are doubts about whether the money was indeed handed over to Khalid. The detailed investigation will try to uncover who received the money.
Legal advice to question Life Mission CEO
The CBI has sought legal advice to question Life Mission CEO U V Jose in the case in which private construction company Unitac received direct foreign assistance for the Wadakkanchery housing complex project.
The agency is seeking legal opinion to find out if it can question the IAS officer without the permission of the state government.
CBI officials usually question state government officials in connection with cases registered under the Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act. For this, they obtain prior permission of the government or an order from the High Court. However, in the alleged violations of Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) in the Life Mission scheme, the CBI had registered a case directly.