KPCC sacks Karassery bank chairman Abdurahiman from party membership

The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) has suspended NK Abdurahiman, chairman of the party-run Karassery Service Cooperative Bank at Mukkom in Kozhikode, for indulging in “anti-party activities” in conspiracy with the Communist Party of India (Marxist). [CPI(M)] take control of the bank.

KPCC chairman Sunny Joseph’s memo dated December 2 said Mr. Abdurahiman was found to have committed “major mistakes.”

The KPCC decision comes after the Kozhikode District Congress Committee (DCC) suggested strong action against the cooperative sector doyen. DCC president K. Praveenkumar had alleged that he had “cheated” the party.

Karassery bank was under the control of a Congress-led board of directors for over two decades. It is headquartered in Mukkom and has five branches and two sub-centres in Kozhikode district.

Gross delays

The bank was taken over by an administrative committee under the Kerala government’s Cooperation Department on December 1 after an audit report highlighted major delays in loan payments. The Congress-controlled executive committee, whose term runs through 2027, was also disbanded.

The cooperation department also claimed that there were complaints about the functioning of the bank, which turned out to be true after official investigations.

However, according to local Congress leaders, Mr. Abdurahiman “created a situation conducive” for the CPI(M) to take over control of the bank. Nine of the 13 directors were planning to file a motion of no confidence against him, claiming that he made unilateral decisions without consulting the board. Between 29 November and 30 November, more than 800 new ‘A’ class members or shareholders were added following the illegal use of the username and password of Nellikkaparamba branch staff. By 29 November the bank had 770 members. However, within a day, the number rose to 1,599 and United Democratic Front activists claimed that the newly added members were CPI(M) supporters.

They also alleged that attempts were being made to take control of the bank, as was the case with Chevayur Service Cooperative Bank.