A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court dismissed the appeal by Industries Secretary A.P.M. Mohammad Hanish against a Single Judge’s order for his personal appearance in a contempt case.

The Single Judge had ordered his personal appearance in a contempt of court petition filed by Kadakampally Manoj of Kollam, a public interest litigant.

The contempt petition was filed after Mr. Hanish denied sanction for a CBI probe into the alleged misappropriation in the import of raw cashew by the Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation between 2006 and 2015.

When the court considered the case on Monday (June 15, 2026), Mr. Hanish submitted that since he had been transferred to another department, he would not be able to make a decision as per the orders of the Single Bench. However, the Division Bench held that he could seek time or ask for the new secretary to be added as a party in the petition pending before the Single Bench.

The Division Bench of Justice K. Natarajan and Justice Johnson John observed that there was no need to interfere in the contempt plea before the Single Bench and directed Mr. Hanish to appear in person on June 19. During the hearing, the court enquired as to why Mr. Hanish had refused sanction, despite the observation of the Single Judge that there was a prima facie case for approving the probe.

The State had thrice denied sanction for the CBI probe to investigate the role of INTUC leader R. Chandrasekharan and P.A. Ratheesh, the former chairman and managing director of the corporation, respectively, in the alleged corruption case. Mr. Manoj moved the High Court against the third refusal.

The Single Bench had recently directed Mr. Hanish to reconsider the denial of sanction for the CBI probe, in accordance with observations made by the High Court in 2025.