Kerala High Court slaps contempt notice on official over 'accusatory' sanction order in cashew scam
The Kerala High Court on Wednesday issued a contempt of court notice to K. Biju, Secretary in-charge of the Cashew Development Department, for his handling of a sanction order allowing the CBI to prosecute two former officials in a raw cashew import scam.
Justice A. Badharudeen ordered Mr. Biju to appear in person on July 10 and explain why he should not be held in contempt. The case involves the alleged import of raw cashew by the Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation (KSCDC), where former chairperson R. Chandrasekharan and former managing director K.A. Ratheesh are accused of irregularities.
The court noted that Mr. Biju issued an initial sanction order on July 2 that was 'accusatory' in nature, stating that the High Court had assumed the role of a trial court and that the state was coerced into granting the sanction. A revised order on July 6 only reserved the state's right to appeal, which the court found unsatisfactory.
The contempt proceedings arose from a petition filed by Kadakampally Manoj of Kollam, seeking compliance with a previous High Court order directing the state to decide on the sanction request. The court had earlier ordered the state to grant sanction for prosecution, leading to the current dispute over the language and intent of the orders.
