Crucial days are ahead for former CPI(M) Kerala state secretary and politburo member Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, as his younger son Bineesh Kodiyeri's bail application is coming up in the Karnataka High Court on Friday.
Bineesh was arrested by the Bengaluru division of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, and since October 29 last year he has been lodged in a Bengaluru jail.
On two previous occasions the bail application was denied by a lower court there and he then moved the High Court in Bengaluru. It will be heard on Friday, which will be the last day of the sitting, following which the court will go for summer break.
Soon after Bineesh’s arrest Kodiyeri Balakrishnan went on leave to avail medical treatment, the CPI(M) said in a statement. He had been undergoing treatment for cancer for a while. After Kodieryi's leave, A Vijayaraghavan took over as state secretary of the party. This was unusual, giving charge to another person while the secretary went on leave.
Bineesh has now informed the court that his father is unwell and it is the responsibility of a son to be near his father at such a time. Hence, he should be given bail, he said, for which he has submitted all the medical certificates highlighting the ailment of his father.
Kodiyeri Balakrishnan along with his wife and elder son had cast his vote in the April 6 assembly polls at their hometown in Tellicherry in Kannur.
After that he was regularly spotted at the state party headquarters. Moreover with the assembly polls results to be announced on May 2 and if the Left retains power, there is a possibility that he will get back the post of the state secretary.