Sulthan Bathery police have registered two cases against five Congress leaders, including the late N M Vijayan, on charges of cheating and fraud. The Congress leadership has been embroiled in a bribe-for-job scam following the suicide of Wayanad DCC treasurer Vijayan and his son Jijesh. Documents have surfaced which show that Vijayan had allegedly taken bribes in return for jobs in cooperative banks ruled by Congress. 

The CPM then launched an agitation demanding an investigation into the suicide of Vijayan. The suicide notes reportedly written by Vijayan to party leadership hold Sulthan Bathery MLA IC Balakrishnan, a former DCC president, current DCC president ND Appachan, Congress leaders KK Gopinathan and former DCC president late PV Balachandran responsible for the debts he had piled up. The letter also indicated that these leaders had received huge sums of money from him, which several job aspirants paid as bribes for employment at various cooperative banks ruled by the Congress in Wayanad.

The police filed cases based on complaints received from two persons; Pathrose, son of Varghese. Appozhatthu House, Nenmeni, and Sayooj VK, son of Kunjikrishnan, a native of Kalanadikolly, Pulppalli. The complaints earlier submitted to the Superintendent of Police, Wayanad, were transferred to Sulthan Bathery police on Tuesday. According to the details, both complaints are registered after 9 pm. As per the FIR, the case of  Sayooj was registered at 11.38 pm. The cases were registered for cheating under sections 420 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code. 

In the complaint filed by Sayooj, an amount of Rs 11 lakh was received from him, who offered a job to his younger brother, Sooraj VK, in the Urban Bank, Sulthan Bathery, in the clerical post in July 2016. Though they approached the accused many times, they refused to ensure a job or return the money. Those accused in the case are Mannil Zakkariya, Sulthan Bathery, Wayanad and George Kurian alias Fenny, Wayanad.

The accused in the second case are Preman UK, Malavayal, Sulthan Bathery, Wayanad, Zakkariya, Mannil House, Sulthan Bathery, Wayanad, Chandran CT, Chalil Thudikayil, Sulthan Bathery and NM Vijayan, Poomala, Sulthan Bathery. As per Pathrose's complaint, the accused cheated him after receiving an amount of Rs 22 lakhs, promising a job at Urban Bank, Sulthan Bathery, in 2014. Though Rs 3 lakhs was returned, the balance of Rs.19 lakhs is still pending. 

The cases were registered just hours before the scheduled visit of the high-level committee of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee to Wayanad. The committee members will meet the Congress leaders and family members of NM Vijayan on Wednesday.