India Legal – July 13, 2019

| INDIA LEGAL |July 22, 2019 47

central leadership took the position that
the party need not intervene after Binoy
said that he had not married the woman
or had any son by her.
The case, however, became more
serious after the woman’s official com-
plaint in which she said that her impov-
erished parents had eight daughters and
she was forced to move to Mumbai to
start practising dance to earn a living.
With the help of a friend, she reached
Dubai and started working as a bar dan -
cer at the Mehbil Dance Bar. In October
2008, according to her version, Binoy
visited the bar and used to shower thou-
sands of rupees on her during her per-
formances. She says he introduced him-
self as a Keralite construction contractor
and gave her several gifts.
A year later, he asked her to visit
him at his house. When she reached his
house, he offered to marry her and lured
her to have sex with him. By 2011, she
had a son from the affair and Binoy paid
for her maintenance.
According to the woman, till 2015,
Binoy was paying the rent of the flat
which he had arranged for her and their
son. “Binoy had offered to marry me on
the first birth anniversary of the son. He
also wanted me to stop the profession of
bar dancer,” she said in the complaint.
She had produced bank details showing
Binoy paying money into her account,
ranging from 50,000 to4 lakh, acc -
ording to Mumbai police.
What the saga has exposed is the de -

generate life of a section of CPI(M) lea -

ders and their family members. Earlier,

CPI(M) leaders in Kerala commanded

respect for their simple lifestyle and dis-

cipline which included making sure

their children or close relatives did not

take advantage of their political status.

Now, it is a different story, with a series

of scandals involving the abuse of power

and amassing of wealth.

This dramatic change happened with

the Kerala CPI(M) leadership’s agenda

to mobilise funds, set up huge institu-

tions and engage their own relatives in

key positions in such institutions. The

CPI(M) currently owns television chan-

nels, newspapers, printing and publish-

ing houses, major hospitals and several

such institutions, engaging a large

number of cadre and family members

as employees. The party has also am -

assed buildings and property worth tens

of thousands of crores and leaders at

each party faction have become direct

beneficiaries.

K

odiyeri has not helped his cause

when he said that had the case

not involved `5 crore, it would

not have cropped up. His response att -

rac ted severe criticism with the opposi-

tion attacking him for trying to bribe the

woman involved. He tried to make up

for his gaffe by stating, “My son is an

adult. He alone is responsible for his

conduct in personal life and he will have

to face the consequences. Party has

nothing to do with it and it will not

intervene.” However, the fact is that the

CPI(M) leader had full knowledge of his

wife, Vinodini Balakrishnan, initiating

conciliatory talks with the Mumbai

woman and her family and making eff -

orts to settle the case amicably through

a payoff. When the woman refused to

budge from her demand of `5 crore

compensation, the scandal acquired a

political dimension.

This comes in the wake of several

instances where Binoy and Bineesh have

assumed positions like “vice president”,

“director” and “partner” in a leading

NRI businessman’s corporate group

while they had average or below educa-

tional qualifications and little profes-

sional qualification or experience.

When their luxurious lifestyle became

public, the father had done nothing to

stop them.

Matters came to a head in February

2018, when a UAE citizen, Hasan

Ismaeel Abdullah Al Marzooqi, who

owns the Dubai-based Jaas Tourism

LLC, claimed that Binoy cheated his

company of AED 7 million (about ` 13

crore). Al Marzooqi had even convened

a press meeting in Thiruvananthapu -

ram. However, following the CPI(M)

leadership’s intervention, the press meet

was cancelled and Al Marzooqi was per-

suaded to withdrew the case.

However, such embarrassments have

robbed the CPI(M) of its moral strength,

a powerful electoral attribute. Chief Mi -

n ister Pinarayi Vijayan’s children have

also been accused of taking favours from

NRI businessmen. Pinarayi’s daughter,

Veena Vijayan, was appointed as CEO of

RP Techsoft, a company owned by Mala -

yali NRI Ravi Pillai in Thiruvanantha -

pu ram. After growing criticism, she quit

the firm and set up her own company.

The latest scandal involving yet ano -

ther powerful CPI(M) leader in the

state, Kodiyeri, is another nail in the

party’s political coffin.

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Contact: [email protected]

The Binoy saga has

exposed the degener-

ate life of a section of

CPI(M) leaders and

their family members

in Kerala. Even CM

Pinarayi Vijayan’s

(left) children have

been accused of

taking favours from

NRI businessmen.

UNI