Thiruvananthapuram: The Enforcement Directorate on Saturday pasted a summons outside Kerala Leader of the Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan's residence, directing him to appear for questioning on October 23 in connection with a money laundering case linked to Cochin Mineral and Rutile Limited. The summons was issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act following an FIR recently filed by the state police, while Vijayan has separately moved the Supreme Court to challenge the Kerala High Court order that paved the way for the police case.
An enforcement official from Kochi visited Vijayan's home near Bakery Junction and affixed the two-page document near the entrance after finding that the former chief minister was not present. Officials stated the measure was taken to ensure the notice was duly received for the scheduled deposition. Senior CPI(M) leader V Sivankutty visited the premises shortly afterward and condemned the agency's method, pointing out that Vijayan was away in Kannur attending party meetings and was not evading authorities.
Sivankutty detailed that an official initially visited in the morning and later returned with police personnel to paste the notice after staff declined to witness the action. He argued that pasting a notice is typically reserved for untraceable individuals and called the treatment of a prominent opposition leader unjustified and anti-democratic, emphasizing that any further steps should await the Supreme Court's ruling.
The Kerala Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau had previously registered FIRs against Vijayan, his daughter Veena T, and his son-in-law P A Mohamed Riyas following an October 9 directive from the Kerala High Court, which acted upon material provided by the central agency. The investigation centers on allegations that CMRL made improper payments totaling Rs 2.78 crore to Veena's former firm, Exalogic Solutions, under the guise of consultancy services, with investigators previously recovering handwritten records pointing to fund transfers to Dubai.