ED Uncovers Hawala Trail in CMRL Fraud Probe; Devices Seized from T. Veena
Indiadailyupdate.com – The Directorate of Enforcement announced on August 18 that its Kochi Zone team, acting under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, had uncovered fresh indications of funds moving through hawala networks connected to T. Veena, daughter of former Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. Nine locations across Kozhikode were searched as part of the ongoing inquiry into alleged corporate fraud and bribe payments at Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL).
Origins of the Probe
The enforcement action traces back to findings handed over by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office, which had examined claims of corporate fraud and bribe payments within CMRL. On April 3, 2025, the SFIO lodged a prosecution complaint in connection with those allegations. According to the SFIO’s account, CMRL management—headed by S.N. Sasidharan Kartha—allegedly booked fictitious cash expenses amounting to ₹182 crore spread across a 15-year span, using those fabricated outlays to channel bribes to assorted individuals.
Among the alleged recipients was Veena herself. Her one-person firm, Exalogic Solutions Private Limited, drew a cumulative ₹2.78 crore from CMRL, supposedly for IT consultancy work, as the ED described it. The agency further alleged that Empower India Capital Investment Private Limited (EICPL), run by managing director Kartha, extended loans totalling ₹50 lakh to Exalogic even though the company had failed to service repayments on schedule.
May 27 Searches and the Handwritten Ledgers
A prior round of searches was carried out on May 27, 2026, at premises belonging to Veena and to CMRL promoters. During that operation the ED confiscated handwritten accounts purportedly kept by Veena. Those notes listed individual names, sums handled or disbursed, and particulars of money routed to Dubai, with entries denominated in both UAE dirhams (AED) and Indian rupees.
The agency stated the notes reflected transfers of roughly AED 349,000 to Dubai—approximately ₹85 lakh in rupee terms. Cumulatively, the handwritten records captured transactions totalling about ₹20.05 crore. Digital devices taken from Veena during the same search contained a photograph of a SIM card registered in someone else’s name, intended for use in a Wi-Fi router. The ED suspects the arrangement was designed to enable internet-based calls under a third party’s identity.
August 18 Operation: Widening the Net
The latest searches on August 18 extended beyond Veena’s immediate circle to individuals associated with her husband, senior CPI(M) leader Muhammad Riyas. Officers visited P. Nikhil, a member of the Kozhikode district secretariat; Nandulal, a DYFI office-bearer and destination tourism manager; P.P. Shaijal, proprietor of K.C.K. Dentals and a former schoolmate of Riyas; IT entrepreneur Febish Mohammed, another former classmate; Varish Kalathingal, managing director of Capital Marbles and Granites; and an NRI identified as Faijas. Every person named in the handwritten ledgers, along with the individual allegedly supplying the SIM card, fell within the scope of these raids.
During the August 18 operation the ED seized multiple digital devices and recorded statements. The agency asserted that evidence of hawala-channel money transfers emerged from these searches and that the seizures suggested Veena was managing sums well beyond her documented income streams. The amounts appearing in the handwritten accounts, the ED contended, exceeded what she had received from CMRL. The agency stated it would pursue further legal steps as warranted by statute.
Political Reaction
CPI(M) state secretary M.V. Govindan, speaking earlier on the same day, charged the ED with mounting a targeted assault on the party, contending that individuals were being raided simply because they knew Riyas personally.
Riyas, too, said he and the party would fight the matter “politically and legally”.
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