Pinarayi Vijayan Questions ED’s CMRL Case, Demands Proof of Alleged Quid Pro Quo

Leader of Opposition in the Kerala Assembly Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday dismissed the Enforcement Directorate’s latest allegations in the CMRL-Exalogic case as “old allegations in a new script”, accusing the central agency of attempting to turn the law into a political weapon. His remarks came after the ED sought registration of an FIR against Vijayan, his daughter T Veena, son-in-law P A Mohammed Riyas and others over alleged bribery and financial irregularities linked to payments by Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) to Veena’s now-defunct company, Exalogic Solutions.

The ED has alleged that CMRL made ₹2.78 crore in payments to Exalogic under the guise of IT consultancy services despite allegedly receiving no corresponding services. The agency has further alleged an illegal gratification of ₹3.28 crore involving Vijayan, along with alleged hawala-linked transactions, including an approximately ₹85 lakh transfer to Dubai. The agency has also referred to records involving around ₹20.05 crore in unaccounted funds. The allegations remain subject to investigation and judicial scrutiny.

Veena has been at the centre of the ED's investigation. She was summoned in June 2026 and questioned at the agency's Kochi office. Her first interrogation reportedly lasted more than nine hours, with investigators examining the CMRL-Exalogic agreements, payments, corporate records and material from the 57-volume SFIO prosecution complaint. Reports said investigators had prepared 172 questions based on Income Tax and SFIO findings and statements of CMRL officials. Veena reportedly told investigators she was unaware of some details and that several Exalogic records were at its Bengaluru office. The ED also examined her bank lockers and questioned her again later in June.

Investigators have additionally examined a ₹50 lakh loan given to Exalogic by an entity linked to CMRL managing director S N Sasidharan Kartha. The ED has relied on statements reportedly given by CMRL officials, including Kartha, while examining whether the consultancy payments were genuine or part of a larger arrangement.

The controversy dates to a 2019 Income Tax search at CMRL, following which suspected fictitious expenditure and payments were investigated. The SFIO later filed a prosecution complaint in 2025, and the ED initiated a PMLA probe. In June 2026, the Kerala High Court allowed the ED investigation to continue, although the ruling did not establish guilt against Vijayan, Veena or Riyas.

Vijayan argues that the ED has now fundamentally changed its narrative. He says the earlier allegation concerned CMRL paying Exalogic without receiving services, while the latest theory claims the money was a bribe for favours allegedly granted to CMRL during his tenure as chief minister. He has demanded evidence identifying the specific favour, date, government order and alleged quid pro quo, maintaining that no undue favour was granted to CMRL.

The latest ED referral puts the Congress-led UDF government in a political bind. Acting on it could allow the CPI(M) to allege coordination with the BJP-led Centre, while declining action could invite BJP accusations of protecting Vijayan.

Vijayan has accused central agencies of being political weapons aimed at weakening the CPI(M)*, insisting that political allegations cannot substitute for legally sustainable evidence. The Kerala government's decision on whether to register an FIR is now the next major flashpoint in a case that has evolved from a consultancy-payment controversy into a wider investigation involving alleged bribery, corporate irregularities, money laundering and political accountability*.