THRISSUR: A Probe team led by Thrissur Range DIG A Akbar questioned three BJP leaders in connection with the Kodakara hawala money laundering case here on on Saturday.BJP district secretary K R Hari, treasurer Sujay Senan and Ayyanthole area secretary G Kasinathan were quizzed for nearly an hour. Police officials said state leaders of BJP and RSS may also be questioned soon.
It all started when Dharmaraj and Shamjudeen lodged a complaint with the Kodakara police station saying that they were waylaid by a gang on the Kodakara flyover on April 3 and took away Rs 25 lakh they were carrying from Kozhikode to Kochi. The complaint was filed only on April 7. As per Dharmaraj’s statement, former Yuva Morcha treasurer Sunil Naik handed over the money to him. Naik said he had only business relations with Dharmaraj.
The probe led by Rural SP G Poonkuzhali revealed that the actual amount was more than Rs 25 lakh and it was a hawala transaction. So far, hawala money amounting to Rs 50 lakh has been recovered by the police. They officials say the actual amount could be about Rs 3.5 crore. The CPM alleged the money was meant for the BJP’s assembly election campaigning, but the latter denied it.