Minister's personal staff accused of taking bribe for appointment of homeopathic doctor; conspiracy, says Minister Veena George

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Health Minister Veena George's Personal Assistant (PA) Akhil P Mathew has been accused of taking a bribe for the appointment of a Medical Officer in Ayush Mission. The complaint was filed by Haridasan of Malappuram. The complaint said a bribe was paid to get his son's wife appointed as medical officer. The complaint stated that the middleman is Akhil Sajeev, a resident of Pathanamthitta and he asked to pay Rs 5 lakh in installments. The complaint also said Akhil Sajeev is the former office secretary of CITU. With the complaint sparking a controversy, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan announced that an investigation would be conducted into the allegation.

Meanwhile, Minister Veena George said that the allegation is false and the conspiracy should be investigated. The complainant said that there was a bank document to prove that he had handed over the first installment of the bribe. He also said that there is CCTV footage to show that he had visited the minister's office. The complainant said that although he complained to the minister on September 9, no action was taken.

The minister said that she received the complaint as a registered post on the 13th and that she lodged a complaint with the police on September 23 after receiving the accused's explanation. On Wednesday, the Special Branch went to Haridasan's house and recorded his statement.

Case registered on Akhil Mathew's complaint

The police registered a case on the complaint of Minister Veena George's personal staff member Akhil Mathew. The police registered the case on charges of cheating. The Cantonment police recorded Akhil's statement. Akhil told the police that he did not know the complainant or the middleman. The accused has been mentioned as anonymous in the complaint. It is said in the FIR that the accused took money from Malappuram native Haridas by posing as Akhil Mathew. Akhil filed the complaint on the instructions of the minister.