Kerala SC-ST minister receives death threats for acting against graft

Thiruvananthapuram: Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) minister of Kerala, K Radhakrishnan, received death threats through his official landline phone, reports IANS. The minister informed that threats came after he started to take strong steps regarding the case of embezzlement of funds meant for the SC/ST community.

More than a dozen officials were alleged with involvement in the misappropriation of funds regarding the fund embezzlement issue. While one of them, UR Rahul, has already been arrested, others managed to procure anticipatory bail. The accused was found misappropriating funds amounting to 4 lakh between August 2020 and March 2021.

Radhakrishnan said that he would not hinder before such threats, but strict action will be taken against them, even whatever acts they resort to.

According to the police investigation team, Rahul had destroyed his mobile and laptop as to clear evidence. They said they are taking him to Delhi as part of the investigation since he destroyed the gadgets during his trip to the national capital.

The opposition in Kerala, Congress, and BJP have launched a series of protests, and one such protest was staged before the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation office. BJP, the opposition in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, demanded a special meeting to discuss the case and sought a CBI probe into it.

The funds regarding the case were meant for the upliftment of the SC/ST community. The program is conducted with the assistance of SC promoters in the Corporation office. Minister Radhakrishnan went on record that his department itself found the discrepancies, and the culprits will be charged. The irregularities related to these funds surfaced after Rahul was transferred from the job he was doing, and an enquiry found that the money was transferred to other bank accounts.

It was recently, Alappuzha MLA PP Chitharanjan (CPIM) and Congress MLA Thiruvanvhoor Radhakrishnan received similar threats.