Thiruvananthapuram, 27 May (H.S.): Kerala Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala on Wednesday said the Kerala Police had no prior information about the Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids conducted at properties linked to former Chief Minister and current Opposition leader Pinarayi Vijayan in connection with the alleged CMRL-Exalogic monthly payment (“Masappadi”) case.

Addressing reporters in Thiruvananthapuram, Chennithala clarified that the state police were neither informed about the operation nor asked to provide assistance during the searches.

“The Kerala Police had no information whatsoever regarding the raids. No request for police assistance was made. The searches are being carried out entirely by central agencies under the protection of central security forces,” the Home Minister said.

He added that any queries related to the raids should be directed to the central agencies conducting the operation and not to the Kerala Home Department.

Chennithala also rejected attempts to politically link the ED action with Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan’s recent visit to New Delhi, where he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

“The Chief Minister’s visit to Delhi was purely to discuss Kerala’s developmental and financial requirements with the Centre. Such meetings are part of normal government functioning. Pinarayi Vijayan himself had met the Prime Minister several times during his tenure as Chief Minister. There is no need to connect the two developments,” he said.

He further alleged that efforts to portray the raids as evidence of a Congress-BJP understanding were politically motivated.

“People of Kerala clearly know the difference between the Congress, BJP and CPM. These allegations are part of a familiar political narrative that no longer influences the public,” Chennithala remarked.

Turning the attack on the CPM, the Home Minister claimed that the Left party had earlier maintained closer ties with the BJP than the Congress ever had.

“It was CPM and BJP that shared the closest political understanding. They should now explain to the public what happened to that relationship and why it collapsed,” he added.

The ED raids are being conducted at 12 locations linked to the alleged CMRL-Exalogic financial transactions case. Searches are underway at Pinarayi Vijayan’s rented residence at Bakery Junction in Thiruvananthapuram, his residence in Kannur, the homes of CMRL Managing Director Sasidharan Kartha and Minister Mohammed Riyas, as well as the Bengaluru office of Exalogic Solutions.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Arun Lakshman