Congress-led Keralam govt firm on anti-corruption probe against Gyanesh Kumar over 2006 road project

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar | Photo Credit: The Hindu

Keralam Public Works Department Minister P.K. Basheer on Thursday (October 29, 2026) stressed the need for a fresh probe into allegations of corruption in the MC Road project undertaken nearly two decades ago, when Gyanesh Kumar, the present Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), was the Public Works Department (PWD) secretary in the State.

The Minister said the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) had earlier investigated the allegations, including a charge that PWD officials had demanded ₹2 crore to clear bills submitted by companies contracted for road development works. However, the investigation files were reportedly closed without the probe being fully completed. The State, therefore, intends to take further action after a detailed review of the earlier investigation report, he said.

A fresh preliminary inquiry has already been ordered into the allegations, although the report is yet to be received. Mr. Basheer disclosed this while replying to questions raised by BJP MLAs B.B. Gopakumar, V. Muraleedharan and Rajeev Chandrasekhar during Question Hour in the State Assembly regarding the status of the Vigilance probe. The new preliminary inquiry was ordered after discrepancies were noticed in the VACB investigation conducted in 2006. The earlier probe mainly focussed on allegations of irregularities in the PWD during the period under scrutiny.