Kerala High Court flays cashew corporation expert team
The court observed criticising the committee headed by Principal Secretary P.H. Kurian
By : rohit raj
Update: 2015-09-24 01:13 GMT
Kochi: Though the High Court ordered a CBI probe into the multi-crore fraud at the Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation, it questioned the expert committee report for not recommending any course of action to be pursued with regard to the malpractices.
The court also observed that the committee maintained silence when it came to recommending action against JMJ Traders from whom 80 percent of purchase of cashew nuts was effected during the last five years.
“Even though clear findings were rendered with respect to various deeds and misdeeds done by the persons concerned, who were at the helm of affairs of the corporation causing huge loss, the committee made recommendations only with reference to the fields of finance, purchase, sales and labour and production,” the court observed criticising the committee headed by Principal Secretary P.H. Kurian.
“The recommendation amounts to ‘remedial measures’ to be taken, to bring back normalcy and to scale down the mounting loss. But there is no solution to the undesirable activities already pursued in violation of the norms with regard to the procurement of raw cashew nuts and sales of cashew kernels,” it observed.
The committee comprising Sasi Varma, secretary and executive director, the Cashew Export Promotion Council of India, J.J. Ranjith, deputy general manager finance and chief financial officer, Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation, and K.S. Rajagopal, joint secretary, department of industries had filed the report.