Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader EP Jayarajan, who resigned from the Kerala Cabinet in 2016 as he was facing nepotism charges, took oath as a minister once again on Tuesday, ANI reported. He will take charge of the Industries Department.
Governor P Sathasivam administered the oath to the minister at a ceremony held at Raj Bhavan. The Opposition United Democratic Front, however, boycotted the ceremony, reported Manorama Online.
Jayarajan landed in trouble in 2016 after he went out of his way to appoint his relatives to key positions in public sector companies. His nephew PK Sudheer Nambiar and his brother’s daughter-in-law Deepthi Nishad were the beneficiaries of his largesse. Nambiar is the son of PK Sreemathi, the CPI(M) MP from Kannur and a member of the party’s Central Committee. Sreemathi is also Jayarajan’s sister-in-law.
While Nambiar was appointed as the managing director of Kerala State Industrial Enterprises, Nishad got the general manager’s job in Kerala Clays and Ceramics Products Limited. It was alleged that both of them didn’t attend the interviews conducted by the Public Sector Restructuring and Internal Audit Board.
Jayarajan’s brazen act had drawn the wrath of public and party members from across the state. He resigned from the Cabinet on October 14, 2016, after Opposition leaders complained to the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau. He was later absolved of all the charges, according to Manorama Online.
The state committee of the Left Democratic Front on Monday gave its nod to bring back Jayarajan.
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