Kerala’s Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau has registered two cases against former chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, his daughter T Veena, and former minister P A Mohamed Riyas over alleged payments linked to CMRL-Exalogic and suspected hawala transactions. The cases were filed under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act after the Kerala High Court directed the agency to register cases instead of conducting a preliminary inquiry.
The cases were registered on Monday by the Vigilance Special Investigation Unit-I in Thiruvananthapuram. Vigilance director Manoj Abraham ordered the action after examining reports submitted by the Enforcement Directorate and the High Court order. The order reached the vigilance headquarters on Friday evening, according to the report.
In the first case, Vijayan is listed as the first accused and Veena as the second. It concerns payments that Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd, or CMRL, allegedly made to Veena’s company, Exalogic Solutions, during the first Pinarayi Vijayan government. The Enforcement Directorate had alleged that the payments were made without corresponding services and amounted to illegal gratification intended for Vijayan.
The case also names seven other accused, including CMRL owner S Sasidharan Kartha. The alleged offences include misuse of official position, criminal conspiracy and the amassing of assets disproportionate to known sources of income. The allegations have not been established in court, and the role of each accused remains subject to investigation.
The second case names Riyas as the first accused and Veena as the second. It follows findings attributed to the Enforcement Directorate that Riyas, who served as tourism minister in the previous government, had allegedly accumulated illicit funds and transferred money abroad through hawala channels. Eight people, including associates of Riyas, have been named in this case.
The registration of the FIRs shifts the matter from a preliminary examination into a formal vigilance investigation. The action also places state investigative agencies at the centre of a case involving alleged financial transactions across Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Kozhikode. Records, including statements from Riyas’s associates, have been transferred to vigilance by the crime branch special investigation team.
The vigilance agency is expected to consider forming a special investigation team to examine the transactions and connected records. The vigilance director is likely to recommend the team’s formation to the state government. The agency is also considering an appeal against the High Court’s direction to register the cases.
