SNC Lavalin corruption case: Govt moves HC again

Kochi: The UDF government has moved the High Court again seeking to speed up the procedures on the revision petitions challenging the order of the Thiruvananthapuram CBI special court discharging CPI(M) politburo member Pinarayi Vijayan from the SNC Lavalin corruption case.

Director General of Prosecution T Asaf Ali filed a plea for the government in the court on Wednesday seeking to consider the review petition immediately.

The government has contented that the lower court had not considered several evidences and its order discharging Pinarayi Vijayan from the case was wrong.

The CBI and Crime Nandakumar had filed revision petitions in the High Court in 2014 challenging the order of the CBI special court discharging Vijayan from the case. The state government later impleaded itself in the petitions.

The revision petitioners contended that the special judge had made irrelevant findings without examining the incriminating material and documents furnished by the prosecution which had established strong prima facie case against the accused.

The CBI special court, while discharging the accused, including Vijayan, had held that the CBI could not prove that any of the accused gained “pecuniary advantage” while awarding the contract to SNC-Lavalin, a Canadian company.

The CBI case was that Vijayan, while serving as Electricity Minister from May 1996 to October 1998, along with the other accused, had hatched a criminal conspiracy to award the contract for the renovation and modernisation of the Pallivasal, Sengulam, and Panniar hydroelectric projects to SNC-Lavalin at an exorbitant cost. The CBI further alleged that the KSEB had entered into a memorandum of understanding without inviting tenders, violating all rules and regulations.