Solar scam: Kerala orders vigilance probe against ex-CM Chandy, Thiruvanchoor

The Kerala government has decided to initiate a vigilance probe against former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and several other Congress leaders in the Rs 7 crore solar scam case.

Chandy's cabinet colleagues Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, Aryadan Mohammed and former Congress legislators Thampanoor Ravi and Benny Behanan would also be probed in the scam that surfaced in 2013.

The decision was announced by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday after the weekly cabinet meeting based on the recommendations of the solar scam commission report submitted by Justice G Sivarajan in September.

The LDF government also decided to register a criminal case against all those whose names had appeared in a letter written by prime accused Saritha Nair, in which she had complained of sexual exploitation. The letter, which Saritha wrote in July 2013, contains serious allegations of rape and sexual assault against several Congress leaders.

Reacting to the development, Saritha thanked the CM and the state government for ordering the probe and also stated that she has finally got justice.

Saritha was the prime accused in the solar scam case, wherein a fraudulent solar energy company, Team Solar, in Kerala, used two women to create political contacts with links even to the Chief Minister's office, duped several influential people to the tune of Rs 7 crore, by offering to make them business partners, or by offering to install solar power units for them, and receiving advance payments for the same.

The Sivarajan commission also recommended registering a case against the top police officers who probed the case. A new special investigation team led by Director General of Police Rajesh Diwan has been set up to investigate the case.