In a significant victory for the ruling Left government in Kerala, the Kerala High Court on Friday dismissed a plea by V D Satheesan, the Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, seeking the annulment of contracts awarded for the Kerala Fibre Optic Network (KFON) project and a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the matter.
The bench, comprising Justices A K Jayasankaran Nambiar and Syam Kumar V M, concluded that there was no prima facie evidence of illegality or irregularity in the KFON project’s implementation. “The material before the court does not persuade us to find any wrongdoing,” the judges stated, highlighting that the project’s objectives appeared to be on track.
The court noted that the KFON project had already provided connectivity through the optical fiber network to 20,336 government offices and free internet access to 5,484 economically disadvantaged families. “Given this progress, there is no reason to interfere with the government’s decisions regarding the project or halt its implementation,” the court added.
The court also declined to hand over the investigation to the CBI, terming the allegations raised by Satheesan as “premature.” The bench further pointed out that the challenge to the project contract awarded to the Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) consortium was “hopelessly belated.”
Satheesan’s petition, which sought to annul the project contract and initiate a CBI probe, was based on certain remarks by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) that questioned the legality and propriety of the contract awarded to the BEL consortium. The petitioner had argued that the contract was awarded at a cost of ₹1,628.35 crore, significantly higher than the ₹1,028 crore sanctioned by the state government in 2017.
However, the court dismissed these claims, stating that “views taken by the CAG as regards any loss caused to the exchequer remains only a viewpoint and cannot be accepted as decisive.” The bench noted that no final report had been issued by the CAG and that any such report, once available, could be scrutinized by the legislature or the Public Accounts Committee for appropriate action.
The court concluded that no grounds warranted its interference with the KFON project under Article 226 of the Constitution, resulting in the dismissal of the writ petition.
The KFON project, aimed at strengthening Kerala’s digital infrastructure, is the state’s internet service initiative to provide widespread connectivity. Kerala is the first state to declare internet access as a fundamental right.
