The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday conducted fresh searches at multiple locations in Kerala as part of its money laundering investigation linked to the CMRL case, in which former chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s daughter Veena was questioned, officials said.
The agency is conducting searches at eight locations in the state under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), they said.
The ED is investigating allegations that Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd (CMRL) made fraudulent payments amounting to Rs 2.78 crore to Veena’s now-defunct company, Exalogic Solutions, in the guise of payments for “IT consultancy services”.
The federal agency had conducted searches at locations linked to Veena in June and subsequently questioned her. At the time, she was living with Vijayan in a rented accommodation in Thiruvananthapuram.
The investigation is focused on the alleged financial transactions between CMRL and Exalogic Solutions.
(With inputs from PTI)