Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Friday ordered a CBI investigation into the wealth of K.M. Abraham, the chief principal secretary to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and a former chief secretary.
Abraham responded to the court's decision by stating that he "wholeheartedly welcomes" the probe.
The investigation was initiated following a petition filed by prominent public activist Joemon Puthenpurackal.
Speaking to the media, Puthenpurackal alleged that Abraham had been concealing his assets for years and had made significant efforts to evade scrutiny. However, the High Court acknowledged the merits of the petition and directed the CBI to proceed with the investigation.
“He will now become another Sivasankar (the now-retired former principal secretary of CM Vijayan who was in jail on two occasions) as Abraham was misusing his positions to thwart any probe,” said Puthenpurackal.
Abraham, apart from being the chief principal secretary to CM Vijayan, is also the CEO of the state-run Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB).
Reacting to the court's order, Jacob Thomas, the former Vigilance Director, said, "The Vigilance Court ordered a probe against Abraham and me being in office in 2016. I went ahead with the probe, but he did everything to stop it using his powers, as he was holding a key post then. The Chief Minister now has a job to do, as no one knows why Abraham continues to be employed in a key post. The CM has to find answers,” said the former director general of police.
Joemon Puthenpurackal, the petitioner, has been pursuing this case for nearly a decade, during which he gathered evidence suggesting that K.M. Abraham acquired assets beyond his known sources of income. Puthenpurackal claims that Abraham owns properties in Mumbai, Thiruvananthapuram, and Kollam and has been paying monthly loan instalments exceeding his monthly income.
Abraham, now 66, retired as Chief Secretary in December 2017 and has since been closely associated with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's office. He is widely recognised for his tenure at the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) from 2008 to 2011, where he exposed financial irregularities within Sahara India. His findings led to the Supreme Court upholding his judgement, resulting in SEBI recovering ₹15,473 crore out of ₹23,000 crore from the Sahara Group by March 31, 2021—the largest penalty ever imposed in India's financial markets. During his time at SEBI, Abraham oversaw the secondary markets, investigation and surveillance divisions, and international affairs.
Puthenpurackal is also known for his pivotal role in the 1992 Sister Abhaya case. He formed an action council, believing Sister Abhaya was murdered, and successfully fought the case, which concluded with two Catholic priests and a nun being convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment after 28 years.
(inputs from IANS)