ED findings provide grounds for corruption case against Pinarayi Vijayan, Riyas, Veena

Kochi: A legal opinion obtained by the Kerala government has confirmed sufficient evidence to register a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act against Kerala Opposition Leader and former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, his daughter T Veena, and her husband, MLA and former minister P A Mohammed Riyas, Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) Managing Director Sasidharan Kartha and others, based on evidence furnished by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The probe centres on alleged financial transactions between CMRL and Veena's now-defunct company, Exalogic Solutions Pvt Ltd, as well as alleged hawala transactions.

Advocate General Jaju Babu's opinion is also backed by a detailed assessment by Director General of Prosecution (DGP) T Asaf Ali. It draws on the Income Tax Department’s Interim Settlement Board report on the payment and receipt of money, as well as statements recorded by the ED.

Asaf Ali said the ED's information would be used to register an FIR.

Under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, even if a public servant receives money through a third party, the law treats it as having been received by the public servant. Once acceptance of a bribe is established, the law also raises a presumption that the amount was received as a reward for doing or agreeing to do an unlawful act, unless the contrary is proved.

The DGP said the evidence relating to the payment and receipt of money, as well as the purpose for which it was paid, provided sufficient grounds for further action.

The legal opinion also refers to the ED’s finding that around ₹20.5 crore had reached Riyas and that the money was subsequently sent abroad. The opinion said that receiving such a substantial amount could constitute assets disproportionate to his known sources of income and provide grounds for registering a case.

The ED recommended an investigation alleging that Pinarayi Vijayan, while Chief Minister, received ₹3.28 crore as a bribe from CMRL through his daughter, T Veena, in connection with the financial transactions between CMRL and Exalogic.

Meanwhile, the Income Tax Department’s Interim Settlement Board found that CMRL made payments to Veena for services that were not actually rendered.

ED moves to attach Veena’s assets
The ED has begun steps to attach assets belonging to T Veena as part of its further investigation into the CMRL-Exalogic financial transactions, ahead of filing a chargesheet in the money laundering case. The assets of some other accused had already been frozen.

The agency collected details and documents related to Veena’s bank accounts and fixed deposits in May. On July 7, ED officials inspected an 80-cent property registered in her name behind the KSEB substation on Pinarayi-Parappuram Road and collected the land tax receipt from the village office.

The agency had earlier frozen the bank locker of Mohammed Febeesh, a Kozhikode native and friend of Veena’s husband, Mohammed Riyas, after an examination.