Former Kerala minister Muneer is seeking a comprehensive probe into the 2006 death of a Malaysian engineer

Former minister MKMuneer. File | Photo credit: The Hindu

Former Kerala Public Works Minister and senior Indian Union Muslim League leader MK Muneer sought a comprehensive investigation into the circumstances that led to the reported suicide of Lee See Been, a project engineer of an Indo-Malay joint venture involved in the World Bank-supported development of MC Road from Angamaly to Thiruvananthapuram in November 2006.

Gyanesh Kumar, the current Chief Election Commissioner, was the Public Works Secretary at the time of the incident. Mr Muneer, who held the public works portfolio from 2001 to 2006, told the media here on Sunday (Oct 4, 2026) that a proper investigation into the death of Been has not been conducted yet. Although there were reports of the memo, it lacked clarity. Mr. Muneer’s term as minister ended in early 2006.

Mr. Muneer said that although the Left Democratic Front government that then came to power conducted an investigation by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau into alleged irregularities related to road work under the Kerala State Transport Project, he was acquitted by the court. Mr. Kumar was later transferred to New Delhi.

Mr Muneer’s remarks come as the United Democratic Front government seeks a preliminary investigation into allegations that alleged efforts to extort bribes from the PATI-BEL consortium, an Indo-Malaysian construction firm involved in the project, caused undue delays and cost escalation. This reportedly led to considerable losses in the exchequer as well as Beena’s suicide.

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Published – 04 October 2026 15:00 IST