Kerala government has reportedly started reviewing the files related to its Life Mission programme, a housing project for the poor, after it surfaced that the gold smuggling accused, Swapna Suresh, received a hefty amount as bribe for the project. The Chief Minister’s Office started reviewing the files related to the project, which are currently under the Local Self Government Department, Finance and Law departments, reported the Times of India.
The report also stated that the memorandum of understanding (MoU), which was signed in July 2019 between the UAE-based Red Crescent and the Kerala government, has come under scrutiny. The Red Crescent had signed the MoU with the Kerala government for sponsoring projects (including houses and health centres) worth Rs 20 crore through Life Mission. Although the MoU makes no mention about any builder, the Kochi-based Unitac Builders and Developers bagged the contract with the help of Swapna and Sandeep Nair, the fourth accused in the gold smuggling case.
It is alleged that Swapna acted as an intermediary between Red Crescent and the Unitac Builders to build an apartment complex, which is meant for the landless and homeless people as part of the Life Mission, in Thrissur’s Wadakkanchery.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) recently revealed that Swapna Suresh, a key accused in the controversial gold smuggling case, had received at least Rs 1.2 crore as commission from the builder for helping them bag the contract.
According to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), Swapna gave a statement that she received a commission from the company for the apartment building.
During a raid in July, conducted to check Swapna’s bank locker, the investigation officials of NIA had recovered Rs 1 crore along with one-kilogram gold. On further questioning, Swapana told ED that the Rs 1 crore she had received a commission through the Life Mission project.
Although she said she received about Rs 1 crore, the bribe amount is reported to be as high as Rs 4 crore.
As per the report in ToI, the Chief Minister’s Office has also been intimated by the NIA and ED that Rs 4.25 crore was given as commission to the accused by the Unitac Builders.
The owner of Unitac Builder had told Asianet earlier that his company has been receiving the amount for the construction of the apartment complex in Wadakkancherry via the bank account of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Consulate in Thiruvananthapuram.
Swapna is the former employee of the UAE Consulate in Thiruvananthapuram. She is the second accused in both the probes by NIA and the Customs Department.
Apart from Swapna and Sandeep, Sarith PS and Faisal Fareed are also the prime accused in the case where 30-kilogram gold worth Rs 14 crore was smuggled into the country, camouflaged as diplomatic cargo from Dubai, in early June.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday said that the controversies surrounding the gold smuggling accused and the Life Mission project, will not be a hindrance to the progress of the project.
Watch Customs confiscating smuggled gold: