KOCHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday questioned Veena T, daughter of Pinarayi Vijayan, for nearly 10 hours in connection with the CMRL-Exalogic case. Sources indicated that she is likely to be questioned again next week.
Veena arrived at the ED office in Kochi around 10.30 am and left at 8.30 pm after the questioning concluded at around 8 pm. Her husband and MLA, PA Mohammed Riyas, accompanied her to the office in the morning but left after dropping her off. He returned later in the evening to pick her up.
This was the second round of questioning of Veena at the ED office in Kochi in connection with the CMRL-Exalogic case. Her first appearance before the agency, on June 17, had also lasted nearly 10 hours.
Sources said the agency is likely to question her again next week and that her next appearance may not be limited to the previously scheduled date of June 29.
The ED had initially issued a notice directing Veena to appear on June 29. However, she appeared before the agency on Thursday after it received 134 documents that form part of the chargesheet filed by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) on Wednesday, sources said.
The documents were received after a delay despite an earlier court order regarding their production, sources added. They reportedly include agreements entered into by Veena and Exalogic Solutions with Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd. (CMRL), a detailed transcript of Veena’s statement, and income-tax returns.
ED officials are understood to have questioned Veena on the basis of these records, which are considered significant to the agency’s investigation.
Following the first round of questioning, ED officials inspected a bank locker held by Veena at an HDFC Bank branch in Thiruvananthapuram.
Earlier this month, the ED widened its probe into the alleged financial transactions between CMRL and Exalogic Solutions, extending the investigation to companies linked to businessman Sashidharan Kartha and his family.
So far, the agency has questioned Shibi S. Kartha, daughter of Sashidharan Kartha; Saran S. Kartha, his son; Anil Ananda Panicker, his son-in-law; Jaya Kartha, his wife; and several CMRL employees.
As in the first round of questioning, police maintained heavy security around the ED office premises on Thursday, given the sensitivity of the case.
