AG leaves it to state police to act on ED report against former CM Vijayan

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Advocate General has left it to the state police to act on the ED’s report against former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, his daughter Veena T and her husband P A Mohamed Riyas in the alleged CMRL bribery case and decide whether to register an FIR, sources said here on Monday.

The government had sought a legal opinion from the AG regarding a letter sent by the ED to the State Police Chief -- DGP Ravada A Chandrasekhar -- seeking registration of an FIR under the Prevention of Corruption Act against Vijayan, Veena and Riyas in connection with the alleged CMRL bribery case on the basis of "evidence" gathered during its probe and searches conducted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

According to sources, Advocate General (AG) Jaju Babu gave the opinion to the state government after consultations with Director General of Prosecution T Asaf Ali and the Additional AG P Muhammad Shah about the factual and legal issues involved in the matter.

In the legal opinion, the AG relied on Supreme Court decisions which held that, on receipt of information from the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the state police are bound to register an FIR, if there is a cognizable offence, or a non-cognizable offence case (NC), whichever is applicable in the circumstances.

The apex court decisions also held that, if on verifying the contents of the report, no cognizable offence is indicated, but the police feels that an inquiry is needed, a preliminary inquiry can be conducted to assess whether a cognizable offence is made out, the AG stated in the legal opinon, according to the sources.

State Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala on Saturday said that the government had received the AG's legal opinion and was examining the same.

He said that further steps would be taken following discussions with the CM.

The ED has alleged that Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd (CMRL) made fraudulent payments of Rs 2.78 crore to Veena's now-defunct company, Exalogic Solutions, under the guise of "IT consultancy services".

The federal agency had searched premises linked to Veena, who was living with Vijayan at a rented accommodation in Thiruvananthapuram, in June and subsequently questioned her.