New Delhi [India], September 8 (ANI): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has formally approached the Keralam Police seeking registration of a First Information Report (FIR) against former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan, his daughter T Veena, and son-in-law PA Mohamed Riyas under charges of corruption, officials said on Tuesday.
The agency communicated to the Keralam Police through a letter asking to register an FIR against them, as the agency is already investigating the Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) financial transaction case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
ED’s Kochi zone is learnt to have written to the Keralam Police last week.
The move comes almost a month after the agency conducted searches at eight premises at various locations of Kozhikode in Kerala in its ongoing CMRL case. The search operations were follow up of previous raids carried out by the ED on May 27 this year in the case. The federal agency found certain new evidence of a money trail from Veena during the searches carried out in May.
On May 27, ED’s Kochi zone conducted searches at 10 premises in the ED case against CMRL directors SN Sasidharan Kartha, Saran S Kartha, Veena and her company Exalogic Solutions Private Limited. The search operation then covered premises in Kottayam, Ernakulam, Kannur, Trivandrum and Bengaluru.
CMRL is a publicly listed company in which 48.75 per cent shares are held by the general public and also 13.41 per cent shares are held by the Kerala state Public Sector Unit Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (as on March 31, 2023).
The Income Tax Department had also conducted searches against the CMRL in January 2019, during which certain fake expenses to the extent of about Rs 130 crore were identified. The fake expenses were also admitted by CMRL before the Income Tax Settlement Commission (ITSC).
The ITSC, in its order, has given a finding of various bribes given to various persons by CMRL and the admissions made by CMRL personnel. A complaint was made before the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) based on the Income Tax Department’s findings, and the Ministry of Corporate Affairs directed investigations by the SFIO. Accordingly, SFIO started investigations.
ED had initiated investigations under PMLA based on the investigations initiated by the SFIO. However, the same was challenged before the Kerala High Court by the CMRL on the ground that there was no predicate offence, and the court had issued ‘no coercive action’ by the ED in this case on April 12, 2024.
The SFIO filed a prosecution complaint on April 3, 2025, for corporate fraud against Sasidharan Kartha and 12 others before the Additional Sessions Court – VII, Ernakulam, Keralam. The SFIO Prosecution complaint contains a scheduled offence of PMLA.
As per the SFIO, S N Sasidharan Kartha, the Managing Director and his son, Saran S Kartha, are accused of receiving Rs 30.63 crores in cumulative remuneration from Financial Year 2015-16 to Financial Year 2022-23 despite no dividend payments.
The SFIO investigations also revealed fictitious cash expenses of Rs 182 crores over a span of 15 years (which were used for bribing various persons). It was further alleged that CMRL paid Rs 91 crores towards transport services to the companies owned by the Sasidharan Kartha family.
ED said one of the fake expenses booked by CMRL is towards the payment to Veena, and that the Company of Veena, Exalogic Solutions Private Limited (a one-person company), received fraudulent payments totalling Rs. 2.78 crores from CMRL under the guise of IT consultancy services.
Further, Empower India Capital Investment Private Limited (EICPL), operated by Sasidharan Kartha, MD of CMRL, extended loans to Exalogic totalling Rs 50 lakh, despite Exalogic failing to make timely repayments.
The High Court of Kerala dismissed a writ petition filed by CMRL on May 26 this year. The High Court held that initiation of PMLA investigations is valid and does not require a predicate offence to initiate investigations. Further, the court noted that as on the date of judgment, a predicate offence existed, as SFIO had filed its prosecution complaint with a scheduled offence of PMLA.
The investigations done by ED before showed that proceeds of crime were generated by the management of CMRL led by S N Sasidharan Kartha and bribes were paid to various persons.
Officials said Veena is a recipient of money from CRML without rendering any services.
Intelligence gathered by ED showed that Veena was residing with her father at Thiruvananthapuram. Accordingly, the premises where she was residing were covered. When the search team reached the premises where Veena was residing, her father was also present.
During the search conducted in May, several incriminating records and accounts, digital evidence, investments and bank fixed deposits were found. The ED has freezed about Rs 18.36 crore in around 242 accounts identified during the search operations, and the evidence recovered is being analysed. (ANI)