Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan Thursday sought the intervention of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in the arrest of NDA Kerala convener Thushar Vellapally.
Vellapally, who is also Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BJDS) chief was arrested in Ajman, UAE Tuesday night in connection with a cheque default case.
In his letter, Vijayan wrote: “News channels have reported the arrest of Thushar Vellapally, Vice President of Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogam, at Yajam in United Arab Emirates. I express concern about his well-being and health while in custody.” Requesting the foreign minister’s personal attention in the same regard, the Kerala CM added: “All possible help within the limits of law to be made available to him.”
Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogan is a prominent organisation of the backward Ezhava community in the state.
According to the complaint filed by Nassil Abdullah, a Malayali businessman, at a police station in Ajman, a cheque to the tune of nearly Rs 19 crore given by Thushar ten years ago had bounced. The transactions were linked to a construction company that was earlier run by Vellappally Natesan, Thushar’s father, and later on by him.
Thushar had fought the parliamentary elections unsuccessfully from the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency against former Congress president Rahul Gandhi.