Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala announced on Saturday that the Kerala Home Department had received the Advocate General’s legal opinion regarding the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) request to register a corruption case against former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, his wife Veena T, and son‑in‑law and MLA P A Mohamed Riyas. The ED had earlier sent a letter to State Police Chief Ravada A Chandrasekhar seeking the filing of an FIR against the trio and other parties in connection with the alleged CMRL bribery case, citing evidence gathered during its probe and searches conducted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
The ED’s allegations center on a purported bribery scheme involving Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd, which allegedly made fraudulent payments of Rs 2.78 crore to Veena’s now‑defunct company Exalogic Solutions under the pretext of “IT consultancy services.” The claim is based on documents collected during the ED’s investigation.
Speaking to reporters, Chennithala said the legal opinion was received on Friday evening and that the Home Department is currently reviewing it. He added that further steps would be decided after consulting the Chief Minister and that no discussion of the matter is needed during the CM’s meeting with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi. Chennithala also noted he had not seen the opinion until after leaving office on Friday.
CPI(M) leaders reacted strongly. General Secretary M A Baby accused the ED action of targeting the party and claimed that the BJP was now focusing on Kerala, expecting support from Congress and the UDF to make inroads. Senior CPI(M) leader A K Balan challenged the UDF government to register an FIR, arguing that doing so would expose the alleged corruption or, if not filed, prove Vijayan’s innocence. He cited earlier investigations by Vigilance and questioned the evidence presented by the ED, comparing the situation to Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” and warning of a “sea of guilt.”
