M Sivasankar arrested by ED in Life Mission scam

Kochi: Former Principal Secretary to the Kerala Chief Minister and retired IAS official M Sivasankar has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the State Government's Life Mission Project, aiming to provide homes to the poor who lost their houses in the floods of 2018.

The ED officials who interrogated him on Friday, Monday and Tuesday, recorded his arrest at 11.45 pm on Tuesday. After a medical checkup, he will be produced before the Ernakulam Principal Sessions Court on Wednesday morning.

With this, he was arrested four times by various central agencies in connection with corruption cases. He was arrested this time following statements against him by accused in the gold smuggling case Swapna Suresh, Sarith PS and Sandeep Nair.

The investigation officials also took the statements of UNITAC managing director Santhosh Eapan and UV Jose, the then Life Mission Chief Executive Officer, in connection with the scam.

Earlier, a CBI probe team found that UNITAC, carrying out construction on behalf of the State Government, did not get the contract through a tender.

UNITAC managing director Santhosh alleged that the accused in the case had received a bribe worth Rs 4.48 crore for the project.(UNI)