Veena Vijayan appeared before the Enforcement Directorate in Kochi on Wednesday following fresh summons regarding the CMRL money laundering probe.
The investigation focuses on allegations that mining firm CMRL transferred Rs 2.78 crore to Veena's defunct IT company, Exalogic Solutions, without receiving services.
The ED's money laundering case stems from an April 2025 prosecution complaint filed by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office.
Veena T, daughter of former Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday for questioning regarding a money laundering case involving her now-defunct IT firm, Exalogic Solutions Private Ltd, and mining company Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd (CMRL).
Veena arrived at the ED office around 10:30 am under heavy police presence, following fresh summons issued by the central agency. She had previously skipped a June 12 scheduled appearance before the agency's Kochi unit, citing health reasons. PTI reported that the probe revolves around allegations that CMRL made payments totalling Rs 2.78 crore to Exalogic without receiving any actual services in return.
The ED has alleged that Veena and the CMRL management generated "proceeds of crime" through these financial dealings. According to PTI, the agency is also investigating another firm, Empower India Capital Investments Private Limited (EICPL)—operated by CMRL Managing Director Sasidharan Kartha—which allegedly extended loans worth Rs 50 lakh to Exalogic despite the IT firm failing to make timely repayments.
Veena was instructed to present relevant financial documents concerning transactions between Exalogic and CMRL. The questioning follows a string of interrogations by the centre earlier this week. On Tuesday, the ED questioned the wife and son of CMRL Founder Sasidharan Kartha, after having interrogated Kartha's daughter on Monday.
The money laundering case was registered by the ED under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). This followed a prosecution complaint filed in April 2025 by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO), the investigatory arm of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, before a court in Ernakulam.
The financial dealings of CMRL originally came under scrutiny during an Income Tax Department raid in January 2019. Reported PTI, that initial raid allegedly detected widespread financial irregularities, including suspected fictitious expenses amounting to approximately Rs 130 crore, which ultimately triggered the subsequent multi-agency investigations.
(With inputs from PTI)
