Kochi: Former Principal Secretary to Chief Minister M. Sivashankar was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). ED informed that evidence has been obtained against Sivashankar in the bribery transaction.
The ED has registered a case under the Anti-Black Money Act following the revelation by Santosh Eepan, the owner of Unitac, that he had paid a bribe of Rs 4.48 crore to get the Life Mission project contract in Vadakancherry. He will be produced in court on Wednesday (today) morning.
The ED summoned Shivashankar to the Kochi office for two consecutive days and interrogated him. The arrest was made after hours of questioning ended on Tuesday night.
The ED’s questioning is based on the statement that the money recovered from the locker of gold smuggling case accused Swapna Suresh was black money received as bribe in the Life Mission project.
Swapna Suresh says that he stands by the allegationsSwapna Suresh, who appeared before the ED on January 23, the accused in the Life Mission corruption case, Swapna Suresh had told the media that she is sticking to the allegations. A deal worth three million dirhams was made in relation to Life Mission. Swapna stated that all the accused in the Life Mission bribery case and the gold smuggling case should be brought out. Apart from Swapna, the ED also interrogated other accused Sarit and Saddeep.
Customs had earlier alleged that Sivashankar took bribe from the contractors to grant the construction contract for the Vadakanchery flat, which is part of the Life Mission housing project for the poor. Based on Swapna’s statement, Customs alleges that Sivashankar took the money found by investigating agencies from Swapna’s luggage as a bribe.
18.50 Crores have been collected through the UAE Consulate for Life Mission’s Vadakancheri project. The case alleges that Rs 14.50 crore was used for building construction and the remaining amount was distributed as bribe, including to officials.