Alleged financial irregularities put Kannur CPI(M) education society under scrutiny

Allegations of financial irregularities and lack of transparency have put the Kannur district leadership of the CPI(M) on the defensive over the functioning of the CPI(M)-led North Malabar Educational Society, which collected share contributions to establish a self-financing college in Iritty, with investors demanding transparency on the funds and progress of the project.The society formed in 2015 had planned to establish a people’s educational institution aimed at providing opportunities for students from the hilly areas, irrespective of caste, religion or political affiliation. Investors have questioned why the proposed college has not materialised even after nearly a decade and have demanded either immediate implementation of the project or the return of their money with appropriate returns.Share amounts were collected from members of the public initially with a larger target of mobilising ₹ 4-5 crore. According to society president and Kannur district panchayat president Binoy Kurian, ₹28 lakh was eventually collected from 328 shareholders. The society says it has since acquired 38 cents of land near Iritty town, against allegations that no land was purchased despite a foundation stone ceremony being held in March 2017.One of the shareholder, a CPI(M) local committee member, Joseph Thomas has alleged that he had raised the issue before party leaders on several locations, questioned the society’s claim and demanded that documentary evidence be produced.“If they say that 38 cents of land was purchased using the money collected from shareholders, they should produce the title deed of that land,” Mr. Thomas told The Hindu. He demanded that the receipt books used for collecting the money should also be produced and totalled to establish whether the ₹28 lakh claimed by them was actually collected.He said the foundation stone ceremony was held at the old bus stand in Iritty in March 2017 with the participation of then Education Minister C. Ravindranath, KPCC president Sunny Joseph and CPI(M) leader P. Jayarajan, although the society had allegedly not acquired land at the time.Mr Thomas said the issue had been repeatedly raised by party members and shareholders before different party committees and senior leaders, including P. Jayarajan and M. V. Jayarajan. He claimed that a CPI(M) State committee member and a district secretariat member had also conducted an inquiry and collected evidence from the complainants nearly six years ago but no effective action followed.“Why the governing body had not convened a proper meeting of shareholders to explain the financial position or reassure investors that their money was secure. If the project could not be taken forward because the amount collected was insufficient, why was a meeting of shareholders not convened and the position explained,” he asked.Mr Thomas also questioned statements that the land could be sold for a profit and the investors’ money returned. “Were people asked to invest in an educational institution, or were they authorising the society to conduct a real estate business?” he asked, adding that the society owed an explanation on the efforts made during the past decade to establish the proposed institution.He said the project had originally been presented as an alternative educational initiative to meet the needs of students in the hilly region and as a counter Pragathi College initiative associated with RSS leader Valsan Thilankery. People contributed because they believed that such an institution would create educational and employment opportunities for youngsters. Their trust has to be protected, he said.Mr Thomas alleged that the continuing uncertainty could damage public confidence in future community initiatives. He also referred to disputes elsewhere over collection receipts and financial accountability, saying credibility could be established only by producing documents and accounts.However, Mr Kurian rejected the allegations as baseless. He said the society was formed to establish a self-financing college and had begun collecting shares for acquiring land and developing the institution. The idea was to establish a parallel education institution in Iritty, he said.“The project was affected by demonetisation, flood and the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted the proposed mobilisation of funds and other activities,” he said.He said the society had collected only ₹28 lakh through its organisational network and had purchased 38 cents of land near Iritty town on the Nerampokku road towards Keezhur-Kudumbam by paying an advance, which has a current market value of around ₹1.5 crore to ₹2 crore.Mr. Kurian said the land was held in the name of the society and that its value was sufficient to repay the money contributed by the shareholders.“The society was considering whether to sell the property and acquire a larger parcel of land or mobilise additional funds to proceed with the college,” he said.He denied any complaints from shareholders that their money had not been accounted for or that they had not received share certificates.“We have given share certificates to all those for whom the money was received,” he said, adding that there had been no specific complaint from any shareholder that the amount paid had not been recorded.He said the society had initially envisaged collecting about 5,000 to 6,000 shares and mobilising ₹4-5 crore. Mr, Kurian also said the society had attempted to operate a parallel college but the number of students declined substantially after COVID-19, forcing it to discontinue the initiative. The project’s progress was also explained before the party committee, he added