Kannur: CPM state secretary M V Govindan on Tuesday refuted the allegations against Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's daughter T Veena over the contract between her firm and Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL).
He pointed out that Veena's company ceased operation already.
“How do two companies publicise details of their contract? Veena's firm had provided services to the company for the amount received,” he claimed.
Govindan was addressing the Secular Street programme hosted by DYFI in Elayavoor on Tuesday.
This clarification came a day after Govindan walked out of a press conference when reporters asked him about the payment Veena received from a mining firm.
Govindan said the financial matters of family members should not be linked to the party. “Party has taken a strong stand when Kodiyeri Balakrishnan's sons faced allegations. CPM won't change its policy in this matter either,” he asserted.
Reacting to Congress MLA Mathew Kuzhalnadan's allegations, Govindan stated that CPM is ready to crosscheck the election affidavit of PWD minister and Veena's husband P A Mohammed Riyas.
The CPM secretary slammed the media for attacking the chief minister's family. “We have already clarified the reality behind the allegations. But they are pretending to be ignorant of the facts. Media houses have turned anti-Communist now. They only support right-wing politics,” he said.
However, he failed to mention that the Income Tax Department had flagged Rs 1.72 crore received by Veena and her firm Exalogic during 2017–20 and called it an "illegal transaction". A settlement board bench of Justices Amrapali Das, Rameshwar Singh, and M Jagadish Babu had declared that the I-T Department has been able to establish on the basis of strong evidence that the money was paid for services not rendered.
Congress and BJP have been attacking the ruling front after Malayala Manorama reported how CMRL paid Veena without receiving any services from her firm.
