The dawn-to-dusk hartal called by the Left Democratic Front (LDF) at Chorode on Friday in protest against the State government’s decision to disband the governing body of the Chorode Service Cooperative Bank was total in the grama panchayat. Shops and commercial establishments remained closed. However, vehicles, including private cars and two-wheelers, plied in the panchayat.
The decision to dismiss the governing body of the bank came close on the heels of the Vigilance and Anti Corruption Bureau (VACB) registering a case against the employees of the bank. The governing body was dismissed after the Vigilance sleuths raised allegations of corruption against four employees, including the secretary of the bank. Now an administrative committee has been entrusted with responsibilities of its day-to-day functioning.
Almost 90 per cent of the employees are affiliated to CPI (M)-led LDF and the rest belong to the Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP). The temporary administrative committee will be managed by RMP leader C. Soman, who is the convener, and other members including local Congress leaders Kalathil Peethambaran and P.T.K. Najeeb.
The Vigilance took up the case against the bank employees after a series of allegation raised by the slain RMP leader T.P. Chandrasekharan as early as 2007.
Cases have been registered against the bank secretary V. Dineshan, manager Suresh, the former senior clerk N.T. Shaji and the former Internal Auditor Prajith on charges of conspiracy, forging documents, and siphoning of funds during the period 2007-2009.
