Kochi: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has spent Rs 17.80 lakh from the state exchequer for lawyers on the Lavalin case, including expenses incurred during the UDF government's tenure.

Meanwhile, the apex court is presently reviewing the 2013 CBI court order that exonerated Vijayan from the list of accused. 

Supreme Court lawyers Adv. CS Vaidyanathan and RK Anand were paid Rs 4.40 lakh and Rs 5.50 lakh, respectively, for handling the case in the High Court. Senior advocates Nageshwara Rao, Rajeev Dhawan, Jayadeep Gupta, and Harish N. Salve, who represented the case in the Supreme Court, collectively received Rs 7.90 lakh, from the government. 

Meanwhile, Rs 40.70 lakh was spent on lawyers handling cases related to women's entry at Sabarimala Temple. Rs 7.50 lakh was paid to senior lawyer and former Attorney General KK Venugopal, who represents the government in the dispute with the governor over the delay in approving bills passed by the state assembly.

This information was disclosed in a RTI reply obtained by activist MK Haridas.