Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) has approached the Kerala High Court to contest a decision made by a single judge, which upheld the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) ongoing investigation into the company’s activities. The appeal, titled M/S Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited & Ors. v. Directorate of Enforcement, follows a series of ED raids conducted at the residence of former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his associates.
The raids occurred shortly after Justice TR Ravi of the High Court dismissed a petition from CMRL and its senior officials, including Senior Manager NC Chandrashekharan, Senior Officer Anju Rachael Kuruvila, Chief Financial Officer KS Suresh Kumar, and Managing Director SN Sasidharan Kartha. The petition sought to nullify the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) and all related proceedings initiated by the ED.
Justice Ravi denied the petition, noting its premature filing following the issuance of summons by the ED. The court also recognized that the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) lodged a complaint against CMRL for violations under the Companies Act, which are considered scheduled offenses under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Although this complaint was filed post-reservation of the court’s judgment, Justice Ravi emphasized its significance.
According to Justice Ravi’s order, “The foundation of the petitioners’ argument that the summons was issued without any scheduled offense no longer exists. Therefore, it is unnecessary to interfere with the summons at this stage due to the absence of an SFIO complaint at the time of issuance. The argument that the respondent’s powers under the PMLA depend on the SFIO’s final report cannot be supported. As previously held, the issuance of summons is solely for investigative purposes and does not necessitate an FIR registration.”
CMRL is a public limited company headquartered in Kerala, specializing in the production of synthetic rutile and other industrial chemicals. The company has come under scrutiny by the ED amidst allegations of bribery and money laundering. Central to these allegations is the claim that CMRL made unlawful payments to Exalogic Solutions Pvt. Ltd., owned by Veena Thaikkandiyil, daughter of former Chief Minister Vijayan.
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Vigilance courts and the High Court have previously rejected multiple petitions for vigilance inquiries into these allegations. Besides the ED, the SFIO is also investigating the matter. The recent petition from CMRL and its officials, dismissed by Justice Ravi, has now been appealed to a Division Bench of the High Court. The appeal argues that concurrent investigations by the SFIO and the ED are inappropriate.
The Division Bench is expected to hear the appeal in the coming week. CMRL and its officials are represented by advocates M Gopikrishnan Nambiar, K John Mathai, Joson Manavalan, Kuryan Thomas, Paulose C Abraham, and Raja Kannan.
