THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The arrest of Indian Union Muslim League leader and Manjeshwar MLA M C Kamaruddin for duping depositors in his gold business has pushed the United Democratic Front (UDF) on the defensive.
The IUML is the second most powerful constituent of the Congress-led UDF.
Ironically, the arrest came on Saturday, the day the UDF launched its ‘one vote against corruption’ campaign. This was the UDF’s campaign slogan in the upcoming local bodies elections, to be held on December 8, 10 and 14.
The MLA was produced before the Hosdurg court, which remanded him to judicial custody for two weeks.
The MLA and other IUML leaders have alleged that the arrest was politically motivated. “My arrest was on the direction of the Government. My case is coming up in the High Court on Monday. But they did not even wait for that. I was not served any notice but was called to the district police chief ‘s office and arrested,” said the MLA.
Incidentally, although the first few complaints were filed against him by three depositors in August, this the first time that the MLA has been questioned in the case. The depositors had alleged that the MLA had duped them of Rs 36 lakh.
Since then, as many as 115 depositors in his Gold business – Fashion Gold – have charged him with cheating. Criminal cheating is a cognizable non-bailable offence.
The Special Investigation Team which arrested him claimed that the police had evidence of Kamaruddin cheating depositors to the tune of Rs 15 crore!
The arrest of the IUML MLA could not have come at a worse time for the UDF, which is all set to launch its campaign in the local bodies elections.
The UDF may put up a brave front on it. But there is no denying that the arrest has knocked the stuffing out of its anti-corruption campaign against the LDF Government. The UDF had embarked upon an aggressive campaign by highlighting its alleged role of the Pinarayi Government in the gold smuggling case and accusing it of massive corruption in the Life Mission project.
There is no doubt that the UDF leaders have been badly rattled by the arrest of the IUML MLA. And it is also a fact that the UDF’s aggressive campaign against the LDF Government has been severely undermined now that one of the UDF MLAs has come under the corruption cloud. (IPA Service)