Supreme Court Rejects Congress MLA’s Plea Against Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan & Daughter Over Alleged CMRL Dealings

The Bench of Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran emphasized that courts are not forums for political disputes, stating: “We have been consistently saying that you fight your political battles before the electorate and not in the court.”

The Supreme Court’s decision upholds the Kerala High Court’s order of March 28, 2025, which had dismissed Kuzhalnadan’s plea seeking an investigation against the Chief Minister concerning his daughter’s now-defunct IT firm, Exalogic Solutions, and its financial dealings with CMRL, a private mining company.

Senior Advocate Guru Krishna Kumar, representing Kuzhalnadan, argued that the High Court had not considered the plea politically motivated. He highlighted that the High Court had, at one point, acknowledged there was “something to be looked at” in the case. Kumar contended that three key facts were indisputable:

1. Exalogic Solutions, owned by Veena Vijayan, had a contract with CMRL.

2. The company received Rs 1.72 crore from CMRL between 2017 and 2020.

3. During proceedings before the Income Tax Interim Settlement Board, CMRL admitted that no services were rendered by Veena Vijayan’s firm.

Kumar submitted that while the High Court had acknowledged these facts created a “suspicion”, it erred in requiring complaints at the pre-cognisance stage to be based on proven facts.

However, the Bench remained unmoved. CJI Gavai reinforced that the findings of both lower courts would not be interfered with, stressing: “Fight your political battles before the electorate. Don’t use the court’s forum.”

Kuzhalnadan had initially approached the Kerala High Court challenging a vigilance court order rejecting his plea for an investigation. Justice K. Babu had dismissed the plea, noting that the MLA failed to present sufficient facts constituting the offence of corruption against the Chief Minister, his daughter, or her company. The court observed that the materials provided “at most triggered a suspicion” but did not establish cognisable offences.

The High Court also clarified that its dismissal did not prevent Kuzhalnadan from filing a fresh complaint in the future, provided adequate supporting material was presented. Importantly, the High Court quashed the vigilance court’s comment suggesting the plea was politically motivated, describing it as “premature” and “unwarranted.”

Alongside Kuzhalnadan’s revision petition, a similar plea by the late social activist Gireesh Babu was also dismissed. Since Babu passed away during the pendency of his petition, an amicus curiae was appointed to argue on his behalf.

The controversy arose after a Malayalam daily reported that CMRL had paid Rs 1.72 crore to Veena Vijayan’s firm despite no services being rendered. The payments were allegedly made on a monthly basis, “due to her relationship with a prominent person”. The Congress party has since targeted Pinarayi Vijayan, his daughter, and the ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist) in Kerala, alleging preferential treatment and misuse of public trust.