Kochi, 12 Oct (H.S.) :Pinarayi Vijayan, his daughter T. Veena and others have approached the Kerala High Court challenging a single bench order directing the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau to register cases in connection with the CMRL–Exalogic controversy.

The appellants sought to set aside the directive, questioning the registration of FIRs directly on the basis of an Enforcement Directorate report. A division bench granted permission to file the appeals and scheduled their consideration for 1.45 p.m. on Monday.

Former Advocate General Gopalakrishna Kurup will represent Vijayan, while senior advocate T.A. Shaji will appear for Veena. S. Sreekumar will represent her husband, former minister P.A. Mohamed Riyas. Advocate B. Raman Pillai will appear for Riyas’s friends named in the alleged hawala and illicit fund transactions case.

The appeals follow the registration of two FIRs by Vigilance Special Investigation Unit-I in compliance with the High Court directive. The first concerns alleged offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act, while the second relates to alleged hawala and illicit financial transactions.

Vijayan has been named as the first accused in the corruption case, which has seven accused. Veena, the owner of Exalogic, is an accused in both cases. Riyas has been named as the first accused in the second case, which has eight accused.

The proceedings stem from information shared by the ED with the state police concerning alleged payments and financial dealings involving Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited and Exalogic.

According to the allegations conveyed by the ED, Veena improperly received ₹3.28 crore from CMRL, had approximately ₹20 crore in allegedly unlawful income and was linked to hawala transactions.

These claims remain allegations subject to investigation and judicial scrutiny. The appeals seek examination of whether the ED report could form the direct basis for registering Vigilance FIRs, placing the legality of that procedure before the division bench.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Arun Lakshman