CMRL pay-off case: Ex-Kerala CM Pinarayi’s daughter Veena appears before ED again

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday questioned T. Veena, daughter of Leader of the Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan, for the second time at its zonal office here in connection with the Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) pay‑off case.

The agency summoned her for questioning after it obtained copies of 134 documents collected by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO), which had investigated the alleged fictitious expenses submitted by the CMRL before the Income Tax Interim Settlement Board.

Ms. Veena, who reached the ED office around 9.30 a.m., left the premises around 8.30 p.m. She was interrogated for nearly eight hours on June 17. A day prior to that, the ED had questioned Shiby S. Kartha, daughter of Sasidharan Kartha and director of an associated firm of CMRL; Saran S. Kartha, joint managing director of CMRL; and Jaya S. Kartha, wife of Sasidharan Kartha, in her capacity as director of Empower India Capital Investments Private Limited (EICIPL).

Following her initial round of questioning, the ED had inspected Ms. Veena’s bank lockers in Thiruvananthapuram on June 19. Subsequently, the agency issued a fresh summons directing her to appear on June 29 in connection with the money-laundering probe in the CMRL pay-off case. However, Thursday’s questioning appears to have been prompted by the receipt of documents from the SFIO.

A special court in Ernakulam had earlier permitted the Central agency to access the SFIO’s documents, which related to alleged fictitious expenses submitted by the CMRL before the Income Tax Interim Settlement Board. These included records of payments amounting to ₹2.78 crore made by the CMRL to Exalogic, Ms. Veena’s now-defunct company. The SFIO, under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, found that the money was transferred without any services being rendered in return.

The SFIO investigation had further revealed fictitious cash expenses of about ₹182 crore over a span of 15 years, allegedly used by CMRL to bribe various individuals.

The ED case stems from a prosecution complaint filed by the SFIO before a court in Ernakulam in April 2025. According to the SFIO, Exalogic and CMRL allegedly entered into an arrangement under which payments were made without any corresponding services being provided.