Riyas Accuses ED of Coercing Witnesses in Exalogic Pay-off Case

Communist Party of India (Marxist) Keralam State secretariat member and Beypore MLA P.A. Mohamed Riyas has accused the Enforcement Directorate of pressuring individuals to give statements against his wife T. Veena, her father and Opposition Leader Pinarayi Vijayan, and himself.

Speaking at a press conference in Kozhikode on Thursday morning, Mr. Riyas alleged that the statements obtained in this manner are subsequently passed to the media in the form of official press releases. He said the agency had earlier asked Ms. Veena to testify against her father, which she refused to do.

The CPI(M) leader also claimed that the ED had circulated incorrect information about her testimony in the Exalogic-Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd. (CMRL) pay-off case. Reports had suggested that Ms. Veena told the agency that her now-defunct company, Exalogic Solutions Private Ltd., had rendered no services to CMRL. Mr. Riyas rejected this, stating that she had given a detailed account of the services provided to CMRL, the payments received through bank accounts and the taxes paid. He added that CMRL Managing Director S.N. Sasidharan Kartha had not given any statement saying Ms. Veena's firm had provided no service.

Responding to media reports that he had "illegally" amassed ₹20.5 crore and "diverted" part of it to Dubai to "set up a business unit there", Mr. Riyas said both he and his wife had visited the country several times. He questioned whether political leaders travel to Dubai to channel hawala money.

The reports are said to be based on a letter the ED wrote to the State Police Chief on September 7, seeking a separate FIR under the Prevention of Corruption Act and other relevant laws against Mr. Vijayan, Ms. Veena and Mr. Riyas in the pay-off case.

Mr. Riyas further alleged that the family members of a businessman friend in Kozhikode were threatened and forced by the ED to testify against him, Ms. Veena and Mr. Vijayan following a search operation on August 18. He said a letter sent by the businessman to the agency retracting his earlier statement had now surfaced, and that the agency was reported to have threatened to implicate his 22-year-old daughter and jail her for years, asking him whether he was trying to protect his own daughter or someone else's.

On why Ms. Veena was not reacting to the allegations, Mr. Riyas said it was her constitutional right to respond or not to respond. Describing the developments as character assassination, he said the truth would come out one day. He stated that he was willing to be questioned by the agency and had clear replies to all questions, and asked whether the ED had found anything after its searches. He said he would not bow down to such tactics by an untrustworthy agency and would fight the matter politically and legally.