Kerala High Court order clears path for ED; CPM faces dilemma over stance on Veena

Thiruvananthapuram: The High Court's dismissal of CMRL's petition challenging the Enforcement Directorate probe has intensified the political stakes for the CPM as the ruling effectively clears the way for the agency to move closer to T Veena.

With the courts already showing little inclination to accept the arguments the party has been advancing publicly, the CPM is unlikely to defend Veena with the same intensity with which it opposed the ED's search at former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's residence. The party also appears to be grappling with uncertainty over the course it should adopt in the matter.

When the Income Tax Interim Settlement Board’s order made adverse references to Veena, the CPM argued that the findings were made without giving her an opportunity to be heard. However, if the ED, now armed with the High Court’s approval, summons Veena for questioning, the party is likely to find it difficult to oppose the move on the same grounds. At the same time, the leadership has made it clear that if the ED attempts to widen the probe beyond the transactions between CMRL and Exalogic and target Pinarayi Vijayan himself, the party will defend him firmly.

The CPM, meanwhile, draws confidence from the fact that attempts to link the financial transactions between Veena and CMRL to Pinarayi Vijayan already fell flat before both the Vigilance Court and the High Court. Moreover, none of the reports submitted by central investigative agencies has so far named Vijayan as an accused or made any adverse findings against him.

For Pinarayi Vijayan to come within the ambit of the ED investigation, the agency would first have to establish that the ₹50 lakh loan and the ₹2.78 crore paid as remuneration by Kartha and his team to Exalogic, set up by Veena in 2015, were intended to exploit Vijayan's political influence as Chief Minister. Even then, investigators would need strong evidence to prove that Vijayan, as Chief Minister, extended any undue favour in return. Statements to be recorded from the CMRL management and its officials in the coming days are likely to be crucial in this regard.

While the CPM continues to maintain that Veena received payment for services rendered and questions how money on which taxes have been paid can be treated as black money, its tone appears to have softened by Friday. Statements by leaders, including AK Balan, suggest that the party has largely moved toward the position that Veena herself should clarify the nature of her business dealings.

Within the party, some leaders believe that the aggressive protests staged outside Veena's residence against the ED had gone too far. The CPI, for its part, clarified that the protest against the ED raid resulted from the agency's eight-hour search at the residence of Pinarayi Vijayan,  who leads the LDF.  The party also maintains that the CMRL-Exalogic deal does not concern it.