As the assembly elections approach in Kerala, the political heat is intensifying around the Nemom Service Cooperative Society financial scandal. The local CPM leadership, led by General Education Minister and sitting Nemom MLA V Sivankutty, is making concerted efforts to address the grievances of hundreds of depositors who lost their money in the alleged multi-crore scam.
Convention and a Rs 15 Crore Promise
According to sources, MLA V Sivankutty will inaugurate a crucial convention for the affected investors at the Nemom corporation hall on January 20 at 5 PM. This event gains significant political weight due to strong speculation that the CPM may once again field Sivankutty as its candidate from the Nemom constituency in the upcoming polls.
At a previous meeting with depositors, Sivankutty communicated with Cooperative Minister N Vasavan. He subsequently informed the victims that the minister had agreed to sanction Rs 15 crore to the beleaguered bank. This infusion of funds is intended to help the society resume basic services and settle a portion of the money lost by people due to the massive financial misappropriation.
The Scale of the Scam and Political Fallout
The irregularities in the cooperative bank, which was under the control of the CPM for decades, are reported to be worth over Rs 100 crore. The party's district leadership itself believes the scandal has adversely affected its political prospects in the constituency. This is not the first such outreach; the CPM engaged in a similar exercise under Sivankutty's leadership just before the local body elections.
As part of the damage control, the CPM has requested the depositors' collective to remove the protest stickers pasted on the bank's gates. These stickers carried a strong message, stating that "those who snatched the money from depositors should not step into the compound seeking votes."
Ongoing Investigations and Victim Profiles
The legal process is moving forward, with the former bank president and secretary currently in jail. The case is under active investigation by both the Crime Branch and the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
The organized depositors' collective comprises 440 members. However, many more individuals and organizations chose not to join the collective or file formal police complaints. They were reportedly swayed by promises from CPM functionaries that their money would be returned in instalments. One notable example is the Nemom NSS Karayogam, which lost over Rs 10 lakh in fixed deposit investments with the bank and did not even file a police complaint based on these assurances.
The party's aggressive pacification campaign underscores the high-stakes political battle in Nemom, where the fallout from the cooperative society scam continues to be a central issue for voters and a significant challenge for the incumbent MLA.
