Forest Minister Shibu Baby John alleges irregularities and high level corruption in Muttil tree felling case

Forest Minister Shibu Baby John

Alleging massive irregularities and high-level corruption in the controversial Muttil tree felling case, Forest Minister Shibu Baby John on Saturday said the incident went far beyond a simple case of unauthorized tree felling and required a thorough investigation into the hidden conspiracy.

Addressing the media in Kollam, the minister pointed out that the government order issued by senior bureaucrat A. Jayathilak would be probed, saying that there was massive looting of timber under the guise of the directive. “The controversial order was eventually revoked, but the revocation was not officially announced until 75 days late. Using that 75-day window, the vast majority of trees were cut down and transported,” he said.

The minister assured that although full details are still emerging based on limited initial information, the government is determined to take a firm stand and conduct a comprehensive investigation into all aspects of the scam to uncover those behind the operation.

Meanwhile, Mr John also reacted to MP Adoor Prakash’s recent remarks criticizing the United Democratic Front (UDF) leadership. The minister said he was not aware of the specific context in which Mr Prakash made the remark and said he stood by the position expressed earlier on the matter by All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary KC Venugopal.

Published – 03 Oct 2026 20:59 IST