Row over Palakkad brewery continues as VD Satheesan lashes out, challenging Minister's claims

Kochi: Opposition Leader V.D. Satheesan lashed out at Excise Minister MB Rajesh, accusing him of uttering blatant lies regarding the granting of permission for a liquor manufacturing plant to Oasis Company in Elappully, Palakkad. Satheesan claimed that the Minister's assertions were now collapsing like a house of cards. The Minister had stated that permission for the liquor plant was granted based on an application submitted by Oasis Company following a change in the state’s liquor policy.

Satheesan pointed out that when the opposition raised concerns about why no other distilleries in Palakkad or the rest of Kerala were aware of the project—especially when Oasis operates in Madhya Pradesh and Punjab—the Minister repeatedly claimed that the permission was granted based on the company’s application.

Speaking to reporters at the Ernakulam DCC office on Monday, Satheesan argued that the Minister had lied about the application. Oasis had submitted an application to the Kerala Water Authority on 16-06-2023, requesting water for the project. In the application, the company stated that it had set up operations in Palakkad following an invitation from the state government. However, the plant’s permission was granted in 2025, while the company’s claim of being invited by the government in 2023 exposed the falsity of the Minister’s claims.

Satheesan also challenged the Minister’s statement that the approval was given because the company had obtained the endorsement of the central government agency, IOC. According to Satheesan, Oasis had applied to the Water Authority for approval to participate in an IOC tender, not based on IOC’s endorsement. In the application, the company mentioned that it owned the land required for the project and needed water. The Minister had claimed the approval was due to IOC’s endorsement, but Satheesan argued that the state government had invited Oasis to Kerala before receiving IOC’s approval.

The application submitted to the Water Authority did not specify the amount of water required, yet it was swiftly granted by the supervising engineer. Satheesan mocked the speed with which the Water Authority acted. He emphasised that the documents clearly indicate that the deal between the state government and the company was finalised before the liquor policy was changed. The company had acquired land in Elappully well before the policy shift, and the IOC’s consent came only after the Water Authority’s approval. The Minister’s claim of IOC endorsement was misleading, Satheesan said.

In the IOC’s expression of interest in 2023, it was suggested that ethanol should be made available, including in Kerala. However, the approval for an ethanol plant in Kerala had not been granted by that time. Oasis participated in the IOC tender in 2023, despite not having approval for the ethanol plant. The state government granted permission for the plant in 2025, raising suspicions of a conspiracy and corruption behind the approval, according to Satheesan.

The opposition also accused the Minister of promoting the company, with Satheesan highlighting that the owner of Oasis had been arrested in connection with the Delhi liquor policy scandal. Additionally, the company was facing legal action for polluting groundwater in Punjab by discharging waste through a borewell.

Satheesan alleged that the deal was made with the knowledge of both the Chief Minister and the Excise Minister, with intermediaries involved. K. Kavitha, who had connections with the Excise Minister and had stayed in Kerala, was allegedly the one who introduced the company to him. The opposition leader claimed that only the Chief Minister and the Excise Minister were aware of the deal, and no other departments had been consulted.

The opposition also accused the Minister of presenting a false Cabinet note to counter their allegations. However, Satheesan stood by the documents presented by the opposition, asserting that they were official records and challenging the Minister to investigate how they were obtained. Despite all these events occurring in 2023, the plant's permission was only granted in 2025, Satheesan said.