Kochi

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued fresh summons to Veena T, daughter of former Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, asking her to appear for questioning on June 17 in connection with a money laundering investigation linked to alleged financial transactions involving her now-defunct IT firm and a Kerala-based mining company.

According to officials, Veena had earlier been summoned to appear before the ED on June 12, but sought a postponement citing health reasons. The agency has now directed her to depose at its zonal office in Kochi on June 17 for the recording of her statement.

The case pertains to alleged transactions between Exalogic Solutions Pvt Ltd, a company formerly run by Veena, and Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd (CMRL), a Kerala-based sand mining company.

ED officials said that CMRL Managing Director Sasidharan Kartha, other company officials, and nine additional individuals have also been summoned on different dates as part of the ongoing probe.

The agency recently conducted searches at premises linked to Veena, who resides with her father in a rented house in Thiruvananthapuram.

Alleged irregular transactions

The ED is investigating allegations that CMRL paid Rs 2.78 crore to Exalogic Solutions under the guise of providing "IT consultancy services". Officials also alleged that another firm linked to Kartha, Empower India Capital Investment Private Limited, extended loans worth Rs 50 lakh to Exalogic despite defaults in repayment.

Investigators suspect these transactions may have generated "proceeds of crime" under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and are seeking explanations from those involved regarding the rationale behind the payments.

Origin of the case

The ED registered the PMLA case in March 2024, taking cognisance of a complaint filed by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO), the investigative arm of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

The SFIO subsequently filed a prosecution complaint before a court in Ernakulam in April 2025.

CMRL first came under scrutiny following an Income Tax Department raid in January 2019, during which investigators allegedly uncovered fake expenditure amounting to around Rs 130 crore.

Court documents indicate that between 2012-13 and 2018-19, the company allegedly inflated expenses worth Rs 133.82 crore by recording bogus payments under transportation and sludge handling heads. Investigators alleged that the cash generated through these fictitious expenses was used to make illegal payments to politicians, political parties, media organisations and public servants.

The documents further state that CMRL's Chief Financial Officer and Managing Director had admitted before tax authorities that such cash payments were made to ensure smooth business operations amid threats of closure and environmental challenges.

Officials also said that CMRL acknowledged these fake expenses before the Income Tax Settlement Commission.

According to the SFIO's prosecution complaint, the company allegedly booked fictitious cash expenses of Rs 182 crore over a period of 15 years to facilitate bribery and paid around Rs 91 crore towards transport services to companies owned by the Kartha family.

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The investigation remains ongoing, and the ED is expected to record statements from all those summoned as it seeks to establish the alleged money trail.