In another blow to the Congress party, a Kerala based construction firm has filed an FIR against the party president Sonia Gandhi, naming her as the prime accused.
In a major embarrassment to the grand old party, M/S Heather Constructions has named the Congress supremo in a case for non-payment of dues. The firm, which filed the complained on Wednesday, was hired to build the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Development Studies in Thiruvananthpuram.
The other leaders who have been named in the legal notice include Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Development Studies Chairman Ramesh Chennithala, former Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy and Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president VM Sudheeran.
The managing partner of the company has claimed that his company was given a contract for constructing the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Development Studies, which was later retracted. The then state unit president Ramesh Chennithala cleared the project during his tenure and the Congress president had inaugurated the institute in October 2005. However, the construction firm alleged that the current KPCC chief has denied settling the dues citing fund shortage and has said there is no need for the institute any more.
Sonia Gandhi had inaugurated the institute in October 2005. The Congress chief had asked the KPCC to settle the dues after the company sent a legal notice. The company, however, claims that it did not receive any money following which an FIR was filed.
Reacting to the news, Congress spokesman RS Surjewala later said, ”Contractor had filed a civil suit, the issue has been sorted out. Within 24 hours, all parties will sit together and settle the issue.”
Defending Congress chief, Surjewala added, ”Neither any criminality is involved nor any default of payment has taken place. They had constructed one at a cost of about Rs 20 crores, a small payment of Rs 2 crores is pending.”
The development comes days after the Congress was ousted from power in Kerala after the recently concluded assembly elections in the state.
