CPI(M) MLA and former Kerala public works minister PA Mohammed Riyas on Wednesday said that he would fight the Directorate of Enforcement (ED)’s actions legally and politically, a day after the agency raided premises linked to his close associates in Kozhikode.
The raids were carried out in eight locations across Kozhikode district, including at a building owned by CPM district secretariat member P Nikhil and a house linked to a close friend of the Beypore MLA. They were part of the ED probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in the CMRL - Exalogic case. The case pertains to allegedly suspicious transactions between CMRL, a chemicals manufacturer, and Exalogic, a now-defunct IT firm, run by Veena T, who is Riyas’s wife and former CM Pinarayi Vijayan ‘s daughter.
“I will fight any allegations against me legally and politically.Some of my friends, whom I have known since college and others through my political work, were questioned yesterday for hours. They run their businesses conforming with all rules of the land. They are well-known and respectable people. Despite (the raids), my ties with them will remain intact,” he told reporters, in his first public interaction addressing the case.
“Everyone knows how the BJP government at the Centre has misused agencies like ED. We know that the ED is very selective about the cases it handles and others that it declines to probe,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}“Everyone knows how the BJP government at the Centre has misused agencies like ED. We know that the ED is very selective about the cases it handles and others that it declines to probe,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}“We are not like those who get elected on the ‘hand’ symbol and join the BJP later. We will not run away. We are not scared,” he said.
Meanwhile, ED on Wednesday claimed it seized some “hand written” notes during searches against fVeena T in May and these contained details of certain fund transfers to Dubai. The agency claimed that digital devices seized from her during these raids contained a photo of a SIM card obtained in the name of some other person, allegedly used by her to make Internet-based calls. It added that its raids on August 18 were against those who were named in Veena’s hand written accounts and the person who allegedly gave her the SIM card.
(with PTI inputs)