THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday continued with its search in the Kandala Cooperative Bank scam and questioned the son of former bank president and CPI leader N Bhasurangan in connection with the case. Akhiljith was questioned by ED sleuths regarding the loans he and his family members had availed of from the bank and the details of his wealth.
Sources said that the documents of vehicles belonging to Akhiljith were taken into custody by ED officials. The ED officials also directed four bank employees to turn up for questioning on Friday. They have been summoned to clear doubts about certain documents recovered from the bank during the raid. The details, sources said, of depositors who had parked large amounts in the bank and those who had availed of huge loans were also collected from the bank. Meanwhile, Bhasurangan was admitted to a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram city after he reportedly developed physical uneasiness on Wednesday night.
Bhasurangan was taken by ED officials from his rented house at Poojappura to his residence at Maranalloor on Wednesday night to complete the raid proceedings. It was then that he reportedly complained of physical discomfort following which he was taken to the hospital owned by the cooperative bank. On the basis of the advice of the doctors, he was shifted to a private hospital in the city for a detailed check-up under CRPF escort.
The ED officials from Kochi unit on Wednesday raided the bank, the residences of former and serving bank officials and the restaurant owned by Bhasurangan’s son following complaints of corruption and mismanagement amounting to about Rs 100 crore in the bank. The raids were conducted on the residences of Bhasurangan, former bank secretaries Shanthakumari at Anchuthenginmoodu, Rajendran at Thoongampara, Mohanachandran at Peroorkada, collection agent Anil at Anchuthenginmoodu, and a staffer Sreegar of Thoongampara.
The ED officials from Kochi reached the bank by 6.30 am. CRPF officials from Pallippuram provided security to the ED officials. The department of cooperation in its audit had found massive irregularities in the bank. It was found that serious financial irregularities and corruption were rampant and pointed fingers at Bhasurangan for providing huge loans to his family members by flouting rules. The ED had earlier taken the report of the cooperative registrar regarding the loan fraud.