The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) has decided to move the High Court against Higher Education and Minority Affairs Minister KT Jaleel who has been accused of nepotism for appointing close kin KT Adeeb as general secretary of the Kerala Minorities Development Finance Corporation (KSMDFC). IUML State General Secretary PK Firos has said that the party will demand that each and every appointment made by the minister be thoroughly investigated into.
According to reports, Jaleel has made over 60 appointments in various departments, including Kudumbashree, after he took charge. In the case of the appointment of KT Adeeb, who is a B Tech graduate and an employee of a private sector bank, the IUML alleged that all rules had been flouted by the minister to appoint his close relative.
The Nepotism row
The controversy began when IUML state general secretary PK Firos and Vice President Najeeb accused the minister of relaxing the rules to allow his cousin KT Najeeb, an employee of South Indian bank, to fill up the position of general manager in the KSMDFC. The position is open to government employees on deputation. However, Adeeb, who worked at the South Indian Bank before joining as general secretary, was not a government employee and hence was not eligible for the job, the IUML leaders alleged.
Brushing off these allegations, KT Jaleel in a Facebook post said that Adeeb was appointed after following all government norms. He said that a private sector employee had to be chosen as he was the best hand for the job.
“We posted several advertisements in newspapers inviting eligible persons to apply for the position. Seven candidates had applied out of which three were chosen. However, none of them was found to be suitable for the position,” Jaleel said, justifying the appointment of Adeeb.
Further, he added that Adeeb was a banking expert and had an MBA in finance. Alleging that the nepotism accusations were politically motivated, Jaleel said that all records were being computerised and this made the IUML leadership angsty as the list of loan defaulters were being readied.
Hitting back at Jaleel, the IUML leaders have alleged that the appointee had no MBA degree and only has a B tech and a diploma called PGDBA, which was required for promotion in banking jobs. Firos also demanded that Jaleel present all advertisements put out seeking candidates for the position.
On the question of his qualification, Jaleel added that several people who occupied big posts in the banking sector, such as former RBI chief Raghuram Rajan, were BTech graduates.
The IUML had initially approached the Vigilance Department in the matter. However, as the case was not progressing, they decide to take legal action in the issue. Demanding that the Minister resign from his post immediately or the Chief Minister expel him, the IUML has proclaimed that they would start protests and would be backed by the UDF. The IUML is the second largest party in the Congress-led opposition in Kerala.
Further, Congress leaders Ramesh Chennithala (Leader of Opposition) and Mulapally Ramachandran (KPCC president) have also demanded that Jaleel step down.