Problems will not end with Veluri's removal, irregularities need to be investigated, says Chennithala

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Problems will not end with the removal of Narendra Nath Veluri from the CEO post of ANERT, said senior congress leader Ramesh Chennithala. He demanded that a detailed vigilance investigation be conducted into the irregularities in ANERT and the culprits be punished in an exemplary manner.

There are corruption worth hundreds of crores in ANERT. This corruption does not end with the removal of an official. This should be investigated in detail. The accused Veluri has been protected by two ministers and top officials in the administration for years.

Disciplinary action was recommended against this official in 2022 after irregularities were found in the projects while he was in the forest department. However, the file, which is unprecedented in history, has been circulated on the desks of officials including the minister and the secretary 188 times.

Jyothilal, who was the secretary of the forest department and the energy department at that time, saw this file many times. Documents received show that the file came before Forest Minister Saseendran. Not only was no action taken against this officer who was recommended for disciplinary action, but he was appointed as the head of important projects like ANERT and Hydel Tourism. How Veluri reached the top post of the energy department, where Jyothilal himself was the secretary while facing action from the forest department, should also be investigated.

The electricity department has not yet initiated any investigation against Veluri, who has become a confidant of the Power Minister Krishnankutty, for the irregularities witnessed in ANERT. It is also noteworthy that the file of this disciplinary action recommendation has been lying around in the public administration department, where a close relative of this minister is the secretary, for the last three years.

Presently, 188 file movements have taken place in three years and the government, including the minister, has refused to respond to the RTI document asking for details of this disciplinary action, which has been postponed without a decision, citing privacy issues.

This government should end its protection and take disciplinary action. A detailed vigilance investigation should be conducted into the corruption. An assembly committee should be set up to investigate the role of ministers, demanded Ramesh Chennithala.