Now, Jaleel's date with Customs; third agency to grill Kerala minister

Now, Jaleel's date with Customs; third agency to grill Kerala minister
K T Jaleel

Thiruvanathapuram: A host of central investigative agencies are staying put in Kerala over a slew of sensitive cases with some linked to ministers and bureaucrats as well as their kin or associates.

After Enforcement Directorate and National Investigation Agency, now the Customs is all set to grill Kerala Higher Education Minister K T Jaleel in connection with the distribution of copies of Quran received from the UAE Consulate.

The national agencies, probing the gold smuggling case, had recently found that the state protocol office was not informed when 8,000 Islamic religious books were brought to the UAE Consulate in the Kerala capital in March.

A total of 250 boxes, containing 32 books each, arrived at the Thiruvananthapuram airport on March 4. Of this, 1,024 books were handed over to Jaleel. Now, a probe has also been initiated into the whereabouts of the remaining 6,976 holy books in 218 boxes.

As per the rules, the permission of the state protocol wing has to be sought when a baggage is brought in via the diplomatic channel. Even if permission is not sought in real-time, most often a written document is submitted later on. However, the state protocol officer was not informed about the parcels.

These parcels arrived from Dubai via the diplomatic channel and were addressed to the UAE Consul General. After Customs clearance, these religious books were reportedly taken to the UAE Consulate. Of this, 32 boxes were handed over to Jaleel after three months. Some packets are reportedly still remaining at the Consulate, but the probe agencies have not been given permission to check this.

Explanation needed on food kits too

The distribution of imported food kits during Ramzan is also a subject of investigation.

Jaleel had earlier given an explanation that he contacted Swapna Suresh regarding food kits after the Consul General approached him with the proposal. However, in her statement given to the probe agencies Swapna claimed that the minister had called her and sought 1,000 food kits.

It has emerged the Kerala State Co-operatives Consumers' Federation or the Consumerfed directly accepted money from the UAE Consulate for the distribution of food kits on Jaleel's directives. This is deemed to be a violation of protocol regarding association of government agencies with a diplomatic entity.

Items worth Rs 5,02,500 were purchased from the Little Triveni Super Store at Maranchery in Jaleel's Thavanur constituency and the bill was issued in the name of the UAE Consulate in Thiruvananthapuram.

Consumerfed MD V M Muhammed Raq too had admitted to this transaction. "The money was remitted by the UAE Consulate. We issued the bill in its name as we were asked to do so. When such an order was placed at the Maranchery Triveni store, the store in-charge took it up. If there was any laxity from the part of the store in-charge, a probe will be held," he had stated earlier as the row erupted.

A case has already been registered under the provision of Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) 2010. The Thiruvananthapuram unit of Customs had questioned Jaleel's personal assistant last week. The phone of the minister's gunman was also seized from his Malappuram house.

Meanwhile, the Customs will summon M Abdul Rahman, the former MD of C-APT which functions under the Higher Education Department.

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