Kochi, 15 September (H.S.):

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has claimed that documents seized from Veena Vijayan, daughter of former Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, contain evidence of alleged hawala transactions and the transfer of money to Dubai.

According to the agency, handwritten entries and financial accounts in a ‘red book’ recovered from Veena allegedly refer to money transferred to Dubai through hawala channels by her and her husband, former minister P.A. Mohammed Riyas.

The ED reportedly included copies of the entries and financial records as supporting material in a 25-page communication sent to the Kerala State Police Chief. The agency sought the registration of cases against Pinarayi Vijayan, Veena, Riyas and others based on its findings.

The red book was allegedly seized during an ED search conducted on May 27 at a rented house near Bakery Junction in Thiruvananthapuram, where Veena had reportedly stayed with her father.

The agency claimed that the suspected financial transactions were carried out between July 2024 and July 2025 with Riyas’s knowledge and through some of his friends. It further alleged that members of his former ministerial staff, friends and associates facilitated the transactions.

According to the ED, a 16-member WhatsApp group was created to coordinate the alleged hawala transfers. The group purportedly included former staff members of Riyas and a resident of Koduvally whom investigators suspect of being associated with hawala operations.

The agency also alleged that Veena and Riyas travelled together to Dubai in May 2024 as part of an attempt to launder unaccounted money.

The ED further claimed that Veena admitted during questioning that she had written the entries found in the red book. The allegations have not yet been established before a court, and responses from Veena, Riyas and Pinarayi Vijayan were unavailable. No independent confirmation of the agency’s assertions was immediately available either.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Arun Lakshman