Mahua, Veena, Kejri... ED moves in for the kill
KOLKATA/T’PURAM/NEW DELHI: Even as the country is on the cusp of general elections, with the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) in force, politicos facing charges continue to make headlines with the Enforcement Directorate (ED) upping the ante. Those to face ED heat on Wednesday included Veena Vijayan, daughter of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, and TMC leader Mahua Moitra. The central agency has issued fresh summons to Mahua Moitra and Dubai-based businessman Darshan Hiranandani for questioning in a Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) contravention case on March 28, official sources said.
The 49-year-old Trinamool Congress leader was called for questioning twice earlier but did not depose citing official work and sought deferment of the notice.
Moitra, expelled from the Lok Sabha in December for “unethical conduct”, has been renominated by her party from West Bengal’s Krishnanagar seat in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. In the case of Veena Vijayan, the federal agency filed a money-laundering case to probe charges that a Kochi-based private firm made illegal payments to an IT company owned by her and some others, official sources said on Wednesday.
The agency has registered the case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and is expected to summon the alleged beneficiaries of these funds and others involved.
The case came to light after the income-tax department found that Cochin Minerals And Rutile Ltd (CMRL) made an alleged illegal payment of Rs 1.72 crore to Veena Vijayan’s company -- Exalogic Solutions -- in 2018 and 2019, even though the IT firm had not provided any service to the private company.
However, the chief minister has rubbished the charges, saying they were made to tarnish his image and defame him.
Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to interfere with the arrest of CM Kejriwal by the ED in connection with a money laundering case linked to the excise policy ‘scam’.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma issued notice on the AAP leader’s petition challenging his arrest and the subsequent remand in the ED’s custody and asked the agency to file its response to it as well as his plea for interim relief of release before April 2. The judge clarified the matter would be taken up for final disposal on April 3 and no adjournment shall be granted.