Kerala orders vigilance probe against CEC Gyanesh Kumar in 2006 engineer suicide case
The case pertains to the death by suicide of Malaysian civil engineer Lee See Been, who was associated with the PATI-BEL consortium tasked with upgrading the MC Road under the Kerala State Transport Project (KSTP).
- Oct 4, 2026,
- Updated Oct 4, 2026 9:37 AM IST
A 2006 infrastructure controversy has resurfaced as Kerala Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala ordered a probe by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, as reported by ANI. The investigation centers on alleged irregularities during Kumar’s tenure as Kerala’s Public Works Department (PWD) Secretary.
The case pertains to the death by suicide of Malaysian civil engineer Lee See Been, who was associated with the PATI-BEL consortium tasked with upgrading the MC Road under the Kerala State Transport Project (KSTP). Lee See Been’s suicide note had reportedly named Kumar, who served as the state PWD Secretary at the time.
As reported by ANI, the fresh probe was initiated following grave allegations that the original preliminary inquiry conducted in 2006 was derailed due to external pressure. The Home Department has since sought all relevant files pertaining to the 2006 VACB preliminary inquiry.
Home Minister Chennithala directed the Vigilance Director to conduct a thorough inquiry into allegations of external influence and take appropriate action based on the findings, noting that the allegations of external intervention in the case were serious and warranted a detailed investigation.
Prior to this development, the state government had withheld contractor payments and sought compensation over project delays linked to the Angamaly-Thiruvananthapuram MC Road project. Lee See Been subsequently died by suicide in Kuala Lumpur, citing alleged corruption involving public works officials in connection with the delay.
According to reports, action against Kumar in 2006 was limited to an administrative transfer, after which he moved to the Centre on deputation.
The case gained fresh momentum following public disclosures by former Kerala Finance Minister Dr Thomas Isaac and references in Vigilance records.
Adding to the controversy, former Kerala Chief Secretary Jiji Thomson alleged that during a 2016 flight to Delhi, Kumar repeatedly tried to persuade him to join the BJP and contest the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, while expressing strong support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s political standing in Kerala.
The reopened inquiry comes as Kumar faces pressure from the opposition parties led by Rahul Gandhi over its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram called on state Chief Electoral Officers to publicly clarify instructions received during the SIR process. "Before other High Courts or the Supreme Court start inquiring or calling the CEOs of all states, I would urge them to speak out: what instructions they received, when they received the instructions, and how they complied with the instructions", he told ANI.
"It's obvious the SIR process is illegal. Did they point it out? Despite pointing it out, did the Election Commission or the Chief Election Commissioner overrule them? They should speak now. This is the time to speak," Chidambaram added.
According to reports indicated that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi recorded objections on 14 separate occasions over a 10-month period regarding decisions on Form 6 submissions, voter deletions, and access to central electoral-roll databases.
The Election Commission rejected claims of institutional dissent, stating that operational feedback during draft stages is standard practice and that final decisions were taken unanimously. The INDIA bloc is stepping up its campaign against Kumar, planning nationwide demonstrations on October 6 and a major rally in New Delhi on November 1.
A 2006 infrastructure controversy has resurfaced as Kerala Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala ordered a probe by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, as reported by ANI. The investigation centers on alleged irregularities during Kumar’s tenure as Kerala’s Public Works Department (PWD) Secretary.
The case pertains to the death by suicide of Malaysian civil engineer Lee See Been, who was associated with the PATI-BEL consortium tasked with upgrading the MC Road under the Kerala State Transport Project (KSTP). Lee See Been’s suicide note had reportedly named Kumar, who served as the state PWD Secretary at the time.
As reported by ANI, the fresh probe was initiated following grave allegations that the original preliminary inquiry conducted in 2006 was derailed due to external pressure. The Home Department has since sought all relevant files pertaining to the 2006 VACB preliminary inquiry.
Home Minister Chennithala directed the Vigilance Director to conduct a thorough inquiry into allegations of external influence and take appropriate action based on the findings, noting that the allegations of external intervention in the case were serious and warranted a detailed investigation.
Prior to this development, the state government had withheld contractor payments and sought compensation over project delays linked to the Angamaly-Thiruvananthapuram MC Road project. Lee See Been subsequently died by suicide in Kuala Lumpur, citing alleged corruption involving public works officials in connection with the delay.
According to reports, action against Kumar in 2006 was limited to an administrative transfer, after which he moved to the Centre on deputation.
The case gained fresh momentum following public disclosures by former Kerala Finance Minister Dr Thomas Isaac and references in Vigilance records.
Adding to the controversy, former Kerala Chief Secretary Jiji Thomson alleged that during a 2016 flight to Delhi, Kumar repeatedly tried to persuade him to join the BJP and contest the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, while expressing strong support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s political standing in Kerala.
The reopened inquiry comes as Kumar faces pressure from the opposition parties led by Rahul Gandhi over its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram called on state Chief Electoral Officers to publicly clarify instructions received during the SIR process. "Before other High Courts or the Supreme Court start inquiring or calling the CEOs of all states, I would urge them to speak out: what instructions they received, when they received the instructions, and how they complied with the instructions", he told ANI.
"It's obvious the SIR process is illegal. Did they point it out? Despite pointing it out, did the Election Commission or the Chief Election Commissioner overrule them? They should speak now. This is the time to speak," Chidambaram added.
According to reports indicated that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi recorded objections on 14 separate occasions over a 10-month period regarding decisions on Form 6 submissions, voter deletions, and access to central electoral-roll databases.
The Election Commission rejected claims of institutional dissent, stating that operational feedback during draft stages is standard practice and that final decisions were taken unanimously. The INDIA bloc is stepping up its campaign against Kumar, planning nationwide demonstrations on October 6 and a major rally in New Delhi on November 1.