Thiruvananthapuram: Five months after his United Democratic Front government was toppled from power, former Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy continues to face the fallout of the infamous solar power scam that is believed to have triggered his government’s downfall.
A magistrate court in Bengaluru on Monday directed Chandy and five others to repay Rs16 million, along with interest, within four months to a Bengaluru-based businessman, M.K. Kuruvila, who claimed Chandy and his acquaintances had cheated him.
In Chandy’s absence, and because the accused had not responded to the summons, the court direction was given ex-parte. In his response to the court order, Chandy said his side had not been heard. Chandy and the others can approach a higher court in appeal.
Kuruvila had petitioned the court that during Chandy’s tenure as chief minister, some people in his office and some people known to Chandy had approached him, asking him to invest in solar power projects.
Kuruvila said he had been promised subsidies and other incentives for the projects and alleged that Chandy had asked for a 25 per cent commission of the profits.
The businessman said he had visited Chandy and the people he recommended to him several times in Delhi and in Thiruvananthapuram, but that the promised businesses failed to take off despite the group having taken money from him.
The solar power scam had at its forefront two other characters, Biju Radhakrishnan and Saritha Nair, who are facing charges of collecting large sums of money from several people, promising them attractive returns through investments in solar power projects.
The scam dealt a mighty image setback for the Oommen Chandy government, culminating in an electoral defeat for the UDF in the 2016 assembly elections in May.
The court verdict is a setback for the Congress in Kerala, which has been mounting an attack on the ruling Left Democratic Front and managing to force the resignation of industry minister E.P. Jayarajan on charges of nepotism.
