Kerala: Day after Vigilance unearths CMDRF fund racket, CM promises stern action, Opp Leader demands special team

Opposition Leader V D Satheesan demanded that a special team should be formed to investigate the matter. “The VACB finding shows that assistance was granted to ineligible persons without any verification of the documents. It is the responsibility of the CMO to examine the applications and sanction funds from the CMDRF,” he said. “Two years back, CPI(M) men were involved in pocketing the aid meant for the flood victims. Many persons close to the CPI(M) are also involved in the CMDRF fund racket,’’ the Congress leader alleged.

On Wednesday, the VACB conducted statewide raids in various district collectorates to look into the anomalies in allotting financial assistance from the CMDRF.

Confirming the fraud, VACB Director Manoj Abraham told reporters here on Thursday that the agency had carried out state-wide raids based on intelligence inputs and some complaints in this regard. Earlier, Manoj Abraham said that the CMO gave directions to unearth the embezzlement after some of the applications they verified were found to be fake.

It was found that in some district collectorates, agents had influenced officials in handling relief applications. The agents had produced fake medical and income certificates along with the applications for financial assistance from the relief fund. In some cases, agents were making people apply for the CMDRF aid and they would take away a share of the sum once it was credited into the accounts of the applicants.

The VACB found that at Anchuthengu panchayat in Thiruvananthapuram district, CMDRF assistance was distributed to 16 applications, all of which had the mobile number of a single agent. Besides, wrong medical certificates were furnished with the applications cleared for the CMDRF.
In Kollam district, a doctor was found to have issued 1,500 medical certificates and in another incident a doctor had issued 13 such certificates. In another case, a doctor had issued 11 fake medical certificates within two days, according to the VACB.

In 2019, when the state witnessed floods, the government had asked the public to contribute to the CMDRF. However, there had been a campaign in social media against the campaign. At that time, Vijayan had said, “The CMDRF is transparent and anyone can examine it. The money collected goes to deserving people. The CMDRF is audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) and accounts are presented in the state legislative Assembly. The details of the money we spent on different aspects of flood relief are on the government website,” Vijayayan said.

However, in 2020, a CPI (M) local leader in Ernakulam district had been booked for pocketing the financial aid meant for flood victims. CPI (M) local committee member M M Anwar had allegedly pocketed Rs 10.54 lakh with the help of a revenue department official.