Kerala’s Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau has registered two First Information Reports against former chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and members of his family in the long-running CMRL-Exalogic matter. The move follows a Kerala High Court order of 9 October in which Justice A. Badharudeen directed that a corruption case be registered on the basis of material forwarded by the Enforcement Directorate. The petition had been filed by activist K. M. Shajahan, who complained that the state was dragging its feet.
The ED had sent its findings to the state police chief on 7 September, saying its money-laundering investigation had turned up indications of offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Those findings relate to payments made by the mineral company CMRL to Exalogic Solutions, a firm linked to Pinarayi’s daughter T. Veena, which the agency says were not backed by genuine services. Among those named in the ED’s request are Veena and Pinarayi’s son-in-law and CPI(M) legislator P. A. Mohamed Riyas.
The state government had instead ordered only a preliminary inquiry by a Crime Branch team, arguing that a case could not rest on diary entries alone. The High Court was unconvinced and held that no fresh preliminary inquiry was required, noting that the ED had also pointed out the inquiry’s time limit had lapsed. The CPI(M) has said it will answer the case both legally and politically, and it remains unclear whether an appeal to a division bench will follow. An FIR is only the start of an investigation and does not establish guilt. The development lands awkwardly for the Satheesan-led UDF government, which had been weighing how aggressively to pursue its predecessor.