Thiruvananthapuram: It has come to light that the Kerala Khadi and Village Industries Board (KKVIB) vice chairperson Sobhana George recommended a salary hike of board secretary K A Ratheesh, who was accused in a corruption case.

Sobhana George recommended the pay rise for Ratheesh in a letter forwarded to the minister for industries on June 26. After receiving the letter, Industries Minister E P Jayarajan asked the principal secretary of industries department to take action on this matter. Following this, an order was issued increasing the salary of Ratheesh.

Sobhana George stated in the letter that Ratheesh used to get Rs 3.5 lakh as salary when he was the director of Inkel company and that he deserves a higher pay. She also demanded that the Khadi Board secretary should be given the same salary as the KINFRA MD.

Ratheesh's salary was doubled when the government is facing a financial crisis due to the COVID outbreak. Appointing an officer, who is involved in a corruption case, in Khadi Board and increasing his pay to more than double the normal salary has triggered a row.