MLAs hostel as hideout for blackmailer sparks outrage

The Legislature Secretariat today swung into action to rid the MLAs hostel here of unauthorised occupations, after it was found that an absconder wanted for blackmailing several persons by pushing them into sex traps and video recording them, was found to have turned the premises for hideout for over a fortnight.
The arrest of Jayachandran (46) two days back had sparked a public outcry as he was found to have stayed in a room in the hostel taken by a former MLA.
Taking serious note of the case and the reactions it set off, the Legislature Secretary conducted checks at the complex and retrieved four rooms taken in the names of former MLAs.

According to Legislature Secretary P D Sarngadharan, none of these former MLAs had raised any objection to the action.
However, a former MLA had alleged that a room was taken in rent by somebody without his knowledge by appending forged signature. This allegation would be taken seriously and looked into, the official said in a press note.
Jayachandran was arrested from outside the MLA Hostel in the heart of the state capital a couple of days back after it was found that he had been staying in a room rented in the name of a former Congress MLA.

He was nabbed while trying to flee the police who went after him on getting information regarding his stay in the legislators' hostel.

Police had gone on a hot chase of the wanted after getting permission from Assembly Speaker G Karthikeyan.
An accused in what came to be known in local parlance as "black mail sex scam", Jayachandran was member of a Kochi-based gang that had allegedly taken videos of several persons, including politicians and highprofile businessmen, after pushing them into sex trap.
The gang used the clippings to extort huge sums from them. While other members of the racket were arrested over a week ago, Jayachandran was absconding.
Taking a serious note of the incident, the Speaker will be convening a meeting of leaders of political parties next week to tighten the norms on renting out spare rooms in the hostel to former MLAs.

CPI(M) state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan termed this as a serious case and called for a high level probe to unearth details of the circumstances in which the absconder came to occupy a room in the hostel.