Vigilance Court finds graft charges against members of CPM-led Kumily Panchayat prima facie punishable

Idukki: The Vigilance Court in Muvattupuzha has found graft charges, in connection with an alleged purchase of fragmented estate land, against the former secretary and 20 members of the Kumily Panchayat council prima facie punishable under sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

In the certified copy of the order procured by the complainant, Kumily-based RTI activist Sajimon Salim, the court has told him that he may move for sanction for the accused government employees from the state.

According to Salim, the Kumily Panchayat purchased five acres of fragmented land in the Churakkulam Estate (formerly MMJ plantation) for developmental activities by violating section 81(e) of the Kerala Land Reforms Act.

“The land deal took place in the financial year 2022-23. The revenue department has started a land ceiling case against the estate owners for fragmenting and selling the estate land to the panchayat and others including retired revenue officials,” said Salim.

If it is proven, during the proceedings of the land ceiling case, that the estate land was illegally fragmented and sold, the government could take over the estate land.

The complainant said he would hand over the certified copy of the court order to the chief secretary soon. “There is very little chance of the state government giving sanction to prosecute the members of CPM-led Kumily panchayat. If the government doesn't grant sanction in 90 days, I will have to file a writ petition in the High Court for the same,” Salim said.

The Kerala State Audit Department has found anomalies in the panchayat's purchase of the five acres for development activities at a cost of Rs 6 crore.

The audit report, which is presently in the public domain, says there was no planning behind the purchase and neither was the land demarcated for various projects such as Buds School, Ayurveda Hospital, playground and town hall among others. The report has said the panchayat committee did not decide on the purchase, rather it was taken by the procurement and steering committee of the civic body.

The report further says the civic body did not advertise in newspapers, seeking land, by specifically mentioning its preferences, and neither does it have details about such an advertisement. The only document with the panchayat is a copy of the advertisement that appeared in the online edition of a Malayalam newspaper, the report states.

According to the Kerala Land Reforms Act, the fragmentation and sale of plantation land that has been given exemption from the land ceiling is strictly prohibited. However, the revenue officials who conducted a field study, on the basis of the complaint, have given reports to the district collector and the Land Revenue Commissioner that an exemption was given to Churakkulam Estate in 1978 to hold more land beyond the ceiling of a plantation.

But over the years, 20.42 hectares of plantation land of the estate was trimmed down to 3.9 hectares through illegal fragmentation and sale, according to the documents accessed by Salim from RTI filings.