CMRL pay-off case: ED questions joint MD Saran S Kartha again
The Enforcement Directorate questioned CMRL's joint managing director as part of a money laundering probe into alleged pay-offs to an IT firm. CMRL reportedly paid fictitious consultancy fees.
The Enforcement Directorate questioned CMRL's joint managing director as part of a money laundering probe into alleged pay-offs to an IT firm. CMRL reportedly paid fictitious consultancy fees.
The Enforcement Directorate questioned CMRL's joint managing director as part of a money laundering probe into alleged pay-offs to an IT firm. CMRL reportedly paid fictitious consultancy fees.
Kochi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday questioned Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd. (CMRL) Joint Managing Director Saran S Kartha for the second time this month in connection with its money laundering probe into the alleged CMRL pay-off case.
Saran, son of CMRL Managing Director SN Sasidharan Kartha, appeared before the ED's Kochi Zonal Office at around 10.15 am after being summoned by the agency. He was earlier questioned on June 16 along with other members of the Kartha family, including Shiby S Kartha, a director of an associated CMRL firm, and Jaya S Kartha, director of Empower India Capital Investments Private Limited (EICIPL).
Monday's questioning comes days after the ED interrogated Veena T, daughter of Opposition Leader Pinarayi Vijayan and owner of the now-defunct IT firm Exalogic Solutions Private Limited, twice this month. On June 19, the agency also searched her bank lockers in Thiruvananthapuram as part of the investigation.
The ED's money laundering case is based on a prosecution complaint filed by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) before an Ernakulam court in April 2025.
Earlier this month, a special court in Ernakulam permitted the ED to access 134 documents comprising more than 15,000 pages collected by the SFIO under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs. The court rejected CMRL's objections to withholding the records, allowing the agency to examine the documents as part of its probe.
According to the SFIO, CMRL paid ₹2.78 crore to Exalogic Solutions between 2017 and 2021 as monthly retainers or consultancy fees. However, the SFIO concluded that the payments were fictitious, stating that no IT or consultancy services were provided by Exalogic in return.
The controversy dates back to an Income Tax Department raid on CMRL in January 2019. During proceedings before the Income Tax Interim Settlement Board (ITSC), the company admitted to booking around ₹182 crore as fictitious cash expenses over a 15-year period. Investigators suspect the funds were used to make payments to various political and bureaucratic figures.
The ED is also examining financial transactions involving Empower India Capital Investments Private Limited, a firm operated by the Kartha family. Investigators are probing loans worth ₹50 lakh extended by EICIPL to Exalogic in two instalments and are seeking to determine why a second loan was sanctioned despite the alleged default in repayment of the first.
With the Kerala High Court dismissing CMRL's writ petition and upholding the ED's jurisdiction under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the agency is cross-verifying statements made by Veena and senior CMRL officials with the documentary evidence. Investigators are examining what they describe as significant inconsistencies and contradictions in the statements, with further rounds of questioning expected in the coming days.