Thiruvananthapuram : The investigation into the bar bribery scam rattling Kerala’s Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) government has taken a crucial turn with a vigilance court here allowing the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB), probing the scam, to conduct a polygraph test on a key witness.
Vigilance Special Judge John K Illikadan granted the permission after the witness, Ambili, the driver of Kerala Bar Hotel Owners’ Association working president and the whistle blower Biju Ramesh, appeared in the court on Monday and gave his consent to undergo the test.
The court has directed investigation unit superintendent of police (SP) R. Sukesan to fix the date for the test in consultation with the Forensic Laboratory at Trivandrum. Ambili had earlier given a statement to the investigating team saying he had seen Finance Minister K M Mani accepting a brief case containing Rs.35 lakhs by association president Rajkumar Unni.
Rajkumar had denied the allegation. However, Rajkumar and three other office bearers of the association rejected the probe team’s request to undergo polygraph test. The vigilance court has now given them time up to May 16 to convey their final decision. Rajkumar said that he was not against the test but needed to take a medical consultation before giving the consent to the test. The probe team had found the number of the car that took Rajkumar to the minister’s residence at the visitors’ register maintained at the main entrance of the residential complex at Cliff House on the day mentioned by Ambili in his statement.
Talking to reporters after giving his consent for the test, Ambili said that he had no problem in undergoing the test as he had only revealed the truth.
