Pillai, who stands to be barred for running in elections for the next seven years, said he was not filing any review petition and would go to jail instead. He also stands barred from running in elections for the next seven years.
The verdict came as a rude shock for the Congress party-led United Democratic Front (UDF) which was expected to win the assembly polls due in May hands down. Top UDF leaders, including Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Oommen Cahndy and Kerala Congress (M) leader KM Mani, called on the Kerala Congress (B) chairman.
A bench of justices, P. Sathasivam and B.S. Chauhan, convicted the former minister while reversing the acquittal order passed by the Kerala High Court in the case pleaded by Kerala Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan alleging corruption in awarding the contract to build a tunnel and surge shaft at the Edamalayar hydroelectric power project in 1982.
Achuthanandan said he was happy that justice had been done after a long fight for more than two decades and it was a warning against people holding public office indulging in corruption.
The apex court upheld the prosecution’s plea that the former minister has entered into a criminal conspiracy that caused a loss of over RS20 million to the Kerala State Electricity Board by awarding contracts to his friend Paulose (who is deceased) at extra ordinarily high rates.
Upholding the appeal the supreme court reportedly said the high court had committed a grave error by overlooking the clinching evidence marshalled by the prosecution and the conviction rightly awarded by the special court in Kerala.
The apex court also expressed concern that cases of corruption relating to political personalities have been dragging endlessly in the country and pointed that in the present case, the prosecution was launched only in 1991 although the scandal took place in 1982.
A visibly upset Pillai, 76, one of the senior-most politicians who had served as a minister under five chief ministers, said he would surrender before the court on getting the summons. His film star-politician son KB Ganesh Kumar, also a Kerala Congress (B) legislator and former minister, said it amounted to highest degree of personal vendetta.
“My conscience is clear. I am innocent. Citing this case, Achuthanandan has been baying for my blood for more than 25 years. It was part of a political vendetta. Let him be happy now,” Pillai said. "It all began after I refused his request for arbitration in a case and he was hunting me like anything after that. His preys include his own party leaders Pinarayi Vijayan and Dr Thomas Isaac".
