Senior Congress leaders former Minister K.C. Joseph and Chalakudy MP, Benny Behanan appeared before the Kottarakkara Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-I on Wednesday to depose as witnesses in the Solar conspiracy case.

Saritha S. Nair is the first accused and former MLA, K. B. Ganesh Kumar is the second accused in the case filed by former District Government Pleader Sudheer Jacob.

In his detailed testimony, K.C. Joseph stated that the conspiracy against former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy stemmed from a deep-seated political vendetta harboured by former MLA, K.B. Ganesh Kumar.

Mr. Joseph explained that in 2013, Ganesh Kumar had to resign as the Minister for Forests and Environment following a domestic violence case registered by the police on a complaint filed by his first wife.

Although top UDF leaders, including the late former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and himself, successfully mediated and resolved the domestic dispute, Mr. Ganesh Kumar’s subsequent bids to re-enter the cabinet were fiercely opposed by his own father and Kerala Congress (B) chairman, R. Balakrishna Pillai. Believing that Oommen Chandy was responsible for his political isolation and the eventual divorce from his first wife, Mr. Ganesh Kumar allegedly orchestrated a series of retaliatory measures.

According to Mr. Joseph’s statement, this culminated in a conspiracy where a 21-page letter originally written by Saritha S. Nair while in judicial custody was manipulated. In collusion with Mr. Ganesh Kumar, four additional pages containing severe, defamatory allegations against Oommen Chandy and other UDF leaders were forged and annexed to create a fraudulent 25-page document.

Testifying next, Mr. Behanan corroborated K.C. Joseph’s statements, offering an identical account of the events and the political conspiracy aimed at defaming the late Chief Minister.

Published - July 15, 2026 07:20 pm IST