Published Oct 09, 2026 | 10:18 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 09, 2026 | 10:19 PM
Keralam CM VD Satheesan.
Keralam Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan on Friday, October 9, said the High Court’s directive to register an FIR in the ₹1.72 crore CMRL-Exalogic payoff case, involving Opposition leader Pinarayi Vijayan, was not a setback for the Congress-led UDF government.
He said the government had acted without undue haste in handling the case involving former chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
“The government has never shown undue haste in this issue. Had we done so, the court could have questioned our intentions. We will follow the court’s directive. I had already made it clear that the law will take its own course,” Satheesan said.
He said the government’s concern was whether an FIR could be registered immediately under the circumstances.
Citing the Supreme Court’s 2014 judgment in Lalita Kumari v. Government of Uttar Pradesh, Satheesan said a preliminary inquiry was necessary before registering an FIR in the case.
“We followed that procedure. We did not want to create the impression that we were in undue haste to register a case against the Leader of the Opposition and those connected with him,” he said.
Satheesan’s response came after a single-judge bench of the Kerala High Court ruled on Friday that an FIR must be registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act against Pinarayi Vijayan, his daughter T. Veena, and son-in-law P.A. Mohamed Riyas in the CMRL-Exalogic case.
Justice A. Badharudeen delivered the verdict on a petition filed by K.M. Shajahan, former private secretary to late Kerala Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan.
Shajahan had challenged the Congress-led state government’s decision to order a preliminary Crime Branch inquiry instead of registering an FIR.
The High Court also quashed the state government’s decision to constitute a special investigation team to conduct a preliminary inquiry into the information furnished by the Enforcement Directorate, holding the move illegal under the circumstances of the case.
(Edited by Fayisa CA)
