–
NEW DELHI: CPM workers on Wednesday attacked a vehicle of Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials during protests outside the residence of former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan in Thiruvananthapuram. The workers are protesting against the central agency over its searches at 10 premises in Keralam, including the residences of Pinarayi Vijayan, in the Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) case, news agency ANI reported.ED officials are carrying out searches at 10 locations, including former Kerala CM’s rented house in Thiruvananthapuram and residence in Kannur, as well as offices connected to the case. Searches are also under way at the residence of CMRL Managing Director Sasidharan Kartha and at the Kozhikode residence of former minister Mohammed Riyas.Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party national convener and former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal criticised the Centre over the ED action.In a post on X, the former Delhi CM said the ED raid against former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan was “yet another blatant misuse of central agencies by the BJP to target regional opposition parties and undermine democracy.”He further added that the timing of the ED action, after Congress had raised concerns about “inaction,” raises questions about the BJP-Congress relationship. The action follows a Kerala high court order permitting the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to continue its investigation in the case. The court had earlier dismissed petitions seeking to halt the probe and declined requests for additional time to approach a higher court. The ED had argued before the High Court that proceedings under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) can continue even without a prior FIR and pointed out that the SFIO had already filed a complaint in April 2025.The ED investigation in the case was initiated following findings by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO), which alleged that payments amounting to lakhs of rupees were made to a company owned by Veena Vijayan for services that were not allegedly rendered.After the central agency issued summons and began searches, company officials approached the court, alleging harassment during questioning and arguing that there was no evidence to justify an ED investigation against the firm.The transactions had earlier come under scrutiny after observations by the Interim Board for Settlement of the Income Tax Department, which questioned their classification as legitimate business expenditure.Following these findings, the ministry of corporate affairs ordered an SFIO probe in January 2024. The ED subsequently issued summons to CMRL officials in April 2024, prompting the company to challenge the agency’s action in court.
