Kerala appointment bribery case: Accused Akhil Sajeev, Basith remanded to custody

Pathanamthitta: Former AISF leader Basith, who is believed to be the mastermind of the appointment scam, has been remanded in police custody for five days. Meanwhile, the main accused in the case, Akhil Sajeev, was remanded by the Pathanamthitta court for 14 days. He will be sent to Kottarakara jail.  The action was taken in the context of the custodial period in the CITU fund fraud case ending today.

Also read: Kerala appointment bribery case: No money paid to Health Minister's PA, accused tells police

The Thiruvananthapuram Cantonment police will reach Kottarakkara jail and take Akhil into custody for questioning in the bribery case. The Pathanamthitta police have also recorded Akhil's arrest in the Spices Board fraud case. BJP Yuva Morcha leader CR Rajesh, a co-accused in the case, is still absconding.
Basith admitted to the Cantonment police that he used the name of Health Minister Veena George's office to extort money from the complainant Haridasan. He claimed to have persuaded Haridasan to include Mathew's name in the complaint and even mentioned that Mathew had got Rs 1 lakh from Haridasan. 

In an earlier statement to the police, Haridasan claimed that Basith had improperly used the minister's name in the fraud case. Basith acknowledged the accuracy of Haridasan's claims.

Initial investigations showed that Akhil Sajeev defrauded Haridasan of Rs 25,000 and that Sajeev's lawyer friend Lenin Raj defrauded him of Rs 50,000. Fraud and impersonation-related charges have been filed against Sajeev and Raj.

An allegation of bribery had surfaced involving the personal staff of Health Minister Veena George. The complaint alleged that Akhil Mathew, her personal staff, accepted a bribe of Rs 1 lakh in exchange for facilitating a doctor's appointment. According to the complaint, a middleman Akhil Sajeev was also involved in the transaction.
 

• appointment bribery case
• akhil sajeev remanded