Thiruvananthapuram: Chief Minister Oommen Chandy's former personal assistant Tenny Joppan was today remanded to judicial custody in connection with the 'solar panel' scam, rocking the state for the last two weeks. Joppan, arrested yesterday after hours of grilling by a special police team probing the case, was produced before the First Class Judicial Magistrate, Pathanamittta, and sent to the district jail for 14 days after all legal formalities. A long time personal aide of Chandy, he was removed from the CM's office earlier this month after his alleged links with Saritha Nair in the solar case came to light. The police case against him is that he had gone out of the way to help Saritha clinch a solar energy solution contract with Sreedharan Nair in Konni in Pathanamthitta. Saritha, who ran a fake company Team Solar, had allegedly received Rs 40 lakh from Nair, promising to secure government support to set up a solar plant at Palakkad. Joppan had allegedly aided Saritha in the deal misusing his influence in the Chief Minister's Office. Police said Saritha and her client had met Joppan at the secretariat and they had made frequent telephone calls. Joppan has been charged with Section 420 of IPC (cheating) and Sec 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance). He was found to have made frequent phone calls to Saritha Nair, facing charge of cheating many people of huge sums by offering them solar energy solutions.