CMRL pay-off case: Veena's handwritten accounts show ₹85 lakh transferred to Dubai, ED finds hawala trail
The ED found evidence of ₹20.05 crore handled and ₹85 lakh transferred via hawala channels, with handwritten accounts detailing transactions beyond known income, in their CMRL-Exalogic case investigation.
The ED found evidence of ₹20.05 crore handled and ₹85 lakh transferred via hawala channels, with handwritten accounts detailing transactions beyond known income, in their CMRL-Exalogic case investigation.
The ED found evidence of ₹20.05 crore handled and ₹85 lakh transferred via hawala channels, with handwritten accounts detailing transactions beyond known income, in their CMRL-Exalogic case investigation.
Kochi: The Enforcement Directorate's (ED) investigation into the CMRL-Exalogic case has taken a new turn as the agency said it found evidence of money transfers through hawala channels and handwritten accounts detailing transactions worth crores of rupees.
The investigation centres on Veena T, daughter of former Kerala Chief Minister and current Opposition Leader Pinarayi Vijayan. The ED had conducted searches at Veena's premises and those of CMRL promoters on May 27, during which the agency said it recovered handwritten accounts containing details of persons, amounts handled and spent, and money transferred to Dubai.
According to the ED, the handwritten notes show that around ₹20.05 crore was handled in Indian currency, while another 3.49 lakh UAE dirhams- equivalent to approximately ₹85 lakh- was transferred to Dubai. The accounts contained entries in both Indian rupees and UAE dirhams, the agency said.
The ED also said it had found evidence of money being transferred through hawala channels during its investigation into bribe payments involving Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL).
The agency said the amounts recorded in the handwritten accounts were over and above the payments received by Veena's company, Exalogic Solutions Private Limited, from CMRL. The entries indicate that Veena was handling amounts beyond her known sources of income.
The ED findings come a day after the ED conducted searches at nine premises in Kozhikode, linked to the associates of former PWD Minister and Veena's husband P A Mohammed Riyas.
During the May 27 searches, the ED also seized several digital devices. According to the agency, one of the devices contained a photograph of a SIM card obtained in another person's name for use in a Wi-Fi router. The agency said it suspects that the SIM card and Wi-Fi router were obtained in another person's name to facilitate communication through internet-based calls.
The ED said all persons named in the handwritten accounts, as well as the person who provided the SIM card, were covered during the searches.
According to the ED, CMRL transferred ₹2.78 crore to Exalogic Solutions under the guise of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementation and IT consultancy services. The agency has alleged that no software, consultancy services or work products were delivered to CMRL in exchange for the payments.
The latest developments are part of the ED's Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) investigation into CMRL, which was initiated following a probe by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO). The SFIO had alleged that CMRL recorded fictitious cash expenses totalling ₹182 crore over a period of 15 years, which were allegedly used to make bribe payments.
The SFIO had also alleged that Exalogic Solutions received ₹2.78 crore from CMRL under the guise of IT consultancy services. It further alleged that Empower India Capital Investment Private Limited, operated by CMRL managing director S N Sasidharan Kartha, extended loans totalling ₹50 lakh to Exalogic despite Exalogic failing to make timely repayments.