The Congress-led UDF ramped up its criticism of the Kerala government following the Comptroller and Auditor General’s (CAG) report, which revealed irregularities in the procurement of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits during the Covid-19 pandemic. Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala, asked, “If this is not corruption, what is?” He accused the Left government of purchasing PPE kits at inflated rates, with the knowledge of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
Chennithala claimed that orders for the kits at lower rates had been cancelled, and instead, the government bought them at significantly higher prices. He pointed to statements from the then Health Minister KK Shailaja, who confirmed that the purchases were made with the Chief Minister’s knowledge. “If this is done with the Chief Minister’s knowledge, then is it not corruption?” Chennithala questioned.
Defending the government’s actions, former Finance Minister Thomas Isaac dismissed the allegations, questioning the basis of the CAG’s claims about lower-priced kits. Isaac also accused the CAG of attempting to discredit the government, suggesting the report was part of a larger campaign against Kerala. “The BJP has destroyed this institution (CAG), and now they are using it to sling mud at our government,” he said. Isaac also claimed that the Congress-led opposition was supporting the BJP’s narrative.
The CAG report, which was tabled in the Kerala Legislative Assembly on Tuesday, pointed to irregularities in the procurement of PPE kits. It stated that these irregularities led to an additional expenditure of Rs 10.23 crore for the state. Furthermore, it alleged that the Kerala Medical Services Corporation Ltd (KMSCL) had favoured a Maharashtra-based company, San Pharma, by providing 100 per cent of the purchase value as advance, in violation of procurement norms.
Chennithala, responding to the report, said that the CAG’s findings confirmed the opposition’s allegations. “It was a huge corruption and loot,” he added. The CAG also revealed that expired medicines were distributed by KMSCL to government hospitals between 2016 and 2022, affecting 26 hospitals in 60 instances. The total value of expired drugs distributed amounted to Rs 0.89 lakh, with the usage of expired drugs posing serious risks to patient safety.
In his statement, Opposition Leader VD Satheesan echoed the allegations, accusing the state government of distributing expired medicines without proper quality checks. “The pharma companies that export medicines have to destroy the medicines. Instead of destroying them, they were distributed at 20 per cent of the rate, with 80 per cent of the commission going to political leadership,” Satheesan alleged. He also reiterated that a case had been filed before the Lokayukta, which had been dismissed by the High Court.
Chennithala pointed out that all of the controversial decisions were made with the approval of the Chief Minister. He demanded that a case be registered against the former Health Minister and Chief Minister Vijayan for their involvement in the alleged corruption. “Whatever allegations we raised have now been proven. The purchase at a higher rate was suspicious,” he said.