Kerala Orders Renewed Vigilance Scrutiny of 2006 Case

Kerala Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala has directed the state Vigilance Director to examine allegations concerning Gyanesh Kumar’s tenure as Public Works Department secretary in 2006, reopening scrutiny of a case linked to Malaysian engineer Lee See Been’s death and a state road project. The Home Department has also sought records from the preliminary inquiry conducted that year. The scope and eventual outcome of the renewed examination have not been specified. Chennithala said the direction followed a petition from Congress figure Malayinkeezhu Venugopal, who alleged irregularities during Kumar’s time in the department. The minister said the earlier Vigilance inquiry did not proceed and that a complaint raised concerns about possible outside influence on its handling. Those allegations are now among the matters to be examined; the sources do not establish that the earlier inquiry was compromised. The case involves Lee, a Malaysian engineer associated with the PATIBEL consortium, which worked on upgrading MC Road under the Kerala State Transport Project. Lee died by suicide in Kuala Lumpur in November 2006, according to reports.