New Delhi, Thursday, February 10, 2011: The Supreme Court today awarded one year rigorous imprisonment to former Kerala Power minister R Balakrishnan Pillai and two others in the Idamalayar dam corruption case.

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.

The apex court upheld the prosecution plea that Pillai, who formed the Kerala Congress (B), had entered into a criminal conspiracy that caused a loss of over Rs 2 crore to the Kerala State Electricity Board by awarding contracts for construction of a power tunnel and surge shaft of the Idamalayar hydro electricity power project to contractor Paulose (now deceased) at extra ordinarily high rates.

Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan, had earlier approached the Supreme court challenging an HC verdict acquitting R Balakrishna Pillai. In a reply to the query from the court, the counsel for Achuthanandan informed the court that the court had earlier given permission for his client to join the case. Earlier the SC had questioned the right of Achuthanandan to challenge the HC order in the case.

The Kerala government also moved an appeal requesting permission to be added as a party in the case. The division bench dismissed the plea pointing out the hearing on the case has already been finished and as such the plea lacks significance. The court also pointed out a decision can be taken based on the plea by Achuthandnan. The final verdict is expected within one month.

There were as many as 11 accused in the case. Eight of them were acquitted by the Special Court and Pillai and two others were sentenced to five-year rigorous imprisonment.

The High Court in October 2003 allowing the appeals filed by Pillai and others had held that there was no legal evidence to connect the accused with the crime. The prosecution had “miserably failed to prove the guilt of the accused beyond a shadow of doubt,” the court had observed. The other accused who were acquitted were Ramabhadran Nair, former Chairman of the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) and P.K. Sajeev, a close friend of Pillai.