Kerala CM Defends Police Inquiry in CMRL-Exalogic Case, Denies Political Motive

Kerala Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan has said that the police inquiry ordered into the CMRL-Exalogic payoff controversy is not intended to target or take revenge on anyone. His remarks came a day after the Congress-led United Democratic Front government initiated the probe, which centres on Leader of the Opposition and former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, his daughter T. Veena and his son-in-law and former Minister P.A. Mohamed Riyas.

Speaking on Wednesday, the Chief Minister said the government was obliged to order the inquiry after proper legal scrutiny. He said the Enforcement Directorate had shared information on record under Section 66(2) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, following which the government sought legal advice. Both the Advocate General and the Director General of Prosecution had opined that an inquiry could be ordered, he added.

Mr Satheesan also referred to the Supreme Court's 2013 ruling in Lalita Kumari versus the State of Uttar Pradesh, noting that registering an FIR in a suspected case of commercial fraud or corruption depends on whether a mandatory preliminary inquiry reveals a cognisable offence. He said all these processes had been followed.

Last month, the ED sent a 25-page report to State Police Chief Ravada Chandrasekhar seeking Mr Vijayan's prosecution under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1985. The agency also claimed in the report that it had seized a diary detailing allegedly illicit financial transactions during a raid at Mr Vijayan's residence in Thiruvananthapuram in May.

Mr Vijayan has disputed the existence of any incriminating entries in the diary. Mr Riyas, meanwhile, has maintained that the personal journal contained scribblings about Ms Veena's business plans in the Gulf, which he said had not yet materialised.