VACB team inspects school in graft probe against KM Shaji

Kannur: A team of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) visited the Azhikode Higher Secondary School in connection with the probe on allegations that KM Shaji,  MLA received a bribe for the upgrading of the school with introductionof Plus-2.

The team is reported to have taken into custody certain records related to the financial transaction including the day book of the school accounts.  The Vigilance is also said to have dug into the entries of expenditure of the amount in question, in the books of the Society that runs the school.

The probe team said that they would take statements from Muslim League leaders including KM Shaji and representatives of the school management.  Vigilance is in an attempt to get to related evidence that confirms the money had indeed been handed to the MLA.

The case against Shaji is that during the UDF government, he accepted a bribe of Rs 25 lakh to get Plus-2 sanctioned for the school in 2013-14.   He allegedly stopped the school committee from paying the money to the Muslim League's Azhikode Committee, which was originally supposed to receive the money,  and later took the amount himself.   

A complaint in this regard was made to the party leadership by Noushad Poothappara, the then vice president of League's Azhikode Panchayat Committee.  Based on the particulars leaked from this complaint,  CPM's Kannur Block Panchayat President K Padmanabhan filed a complaint with the Vigilance on which the anti-graft agency filed a case.

VACB had taken the statements of Padmanabhan and Noushad Poothappara a few days ago and both of them are learnt to have deposed against Shaji.