‘Gyanesh Kumar sought Rs 2 crore bribe’: Kerala Vigilance records statement

The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau in Kerala has started a preliminary inquiry into bribe allegations against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar during his term as a Public Works Department secretary in Kerala in 2006. The investigating officers on Monday, November 9, took a statement from VO Sajan, who used to supply materials to PATI-BEL consortium, a contracting firm which executed works under Kerala State Transport Project. 

Chief Project Manager of PATI-BELI, Malaysian-native Lee See Been, had died by suicide in 2006, which triggered an allegation against PWD officials, including the then secretary Gyanesh Kumar. Media reports of the time had alleged that Gyanesh had sought bribe for releasing the pending bills and that he was named in Lee’s suicide note. However, the Vigilance had then closed the case after failing to find any irregularities in the project. The contents of the suicide note too was never made public by Lee’s family. 

In October, Kerala Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala ordered for a fresh probe in the backdrop of Gyanesh facing allegations over his position as CEC. The order came based on a complaint filed by Congress leader Malainkeezhu Gopalakrishnan. 

Weeks after Vigilance was asked to begin the probe, Sajan, a native of Chadayamangalam, came forward with the allegation that Gyanesh had sought Rs 2 crore from Lee. He also filed a complaint of the Vigilance director, seeking an inquiry into the allegation. 

Talking to TNM over phone, Sajan said that Lee had told him about Gyanesh seeking Rs 2 crore bribe for releasing the pending bills. Sajan used to supply materials to PATI-BEL after it took up construction of Main Central road in 2001. “PATI-BEL’s camp office in Chadayamangalam was close to my house. My friends and I had a contract to supply materials and machinery. We used to get payment on time until it stopped abruptly one day. Some of us went to Lee’s cabin to protest. That is when we learned that four bills worth around Rs 14 crore were held up by PWD secretary Gyanesh. Lee and other PATI-BEL engineer Sukumaran told us that Gyanesh had sought a bribe of Rs 2 crore,” he said. 

Months later, Lee had gone back to Malaysia, where he died by suicide on November 11, 2006 at a park near Kuala Lumpur. Lee had reportedly left two suicide notes - one addressed to his wife and other to company director Ross Lee.

“Later, Sukumaran sir told me about the suicide and the notes. He told me he had seen the notes and Gyanesh was named in it,” said Sajan.

Sajan said that he learned only recently that Gyanesh was given a clean chit in the case. “Had the Vigilance taken statements from PATI-BEL employees like Sukumaran, then they could have cracked the case,” he said.

TNM has independently verified and confirmed that PATI-BEL had an office in Chadayamangalam and Sukumaran, who too was a Malaysian national, was its employee. We couldn’t trace Sukumaran who left for Malaysia sometime after Lee’s death. Sources who were part of the project, but wished to remain anonymous, told TNM that they were not aware of the bribe allegation and Lee had never mentioned anything to them before leaving for Malaysia in November 2006. According to them, it was the finance department which withheld the bills and not the PWD. Lee went to Malaysia hoping that the company would release more funds to clear the bottleneck, sources said.