ED files money laundering case against Kerala CM’s daughter Veena Vijayan over ‘illegal payments’

The Enforcement Directorate has filed a money laundering case against Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s daughter Veena Vijayan, her IT company and some others to probe a case of alleged illegal payments made by a private mineral firm to her and the company, reported PTI citing official sources.

The agency has registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and is expected to summon the people involved, the sources said. The central agency filed a case against Vijayan after taking cognizance of a complaint filed by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO).

The case filed against Kerala CM’s daughter stems from an Income Tax Department investigation that alleged that a private company called Cochin Minerals And Rutile Ltd (CMRL), made an illegal payment of ₹1.72 crore to Veena’s company– Exalogic Solutions– during 2018 to 2019, even though the IT firm had not provided any service to the company.

The Karnataka High Court had last month dismissed a plea filed by Exalogic Solutions against the probe initiated by the SFIO.