In the case linked to the CPM-controlled Karuvannur Cooperative Bank in Thrissur district, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned K. Radhakrishnan, Member of Parliament. Radhakrishnan, a Lok Sabha MP, is a former Kerala minister, former Speaker of the state assembly, former Thrissur district secretary of the CPM, and a CPM Central Committee member.
The ED summons required him to appear before the Kochi Regional Office on 12 March. However, as Radhakrishnan was in Delhi, he received the summons only on 13 March. Consequently, he was granted an additional day to appear. This is the first time Radhakrishnan has been summoned, while other senior CPM leaders, A.C. Moideen and M.M. Varghese, had previously been interrogated multiple times by the ED.
The scam took place between 2016 and 2018, when A.C. Moideen, M.M. Varghese, and K. Radhakrishnan served as CPM district secretaries in Thrissur. During their tenure, fraudulent loans amounting to crores of rupees were sanctioned, with ED investigations revealing that CPM leaders received hefty commissions. Reports indicate that Radhakrishnan’s family accepted gold ornaments from the main accused in connection with his niece’s wedding, a fact the ED has reportedly confirmed.
Last year, the ED provisionally attached a 10-cent plot in Porathissery, purchased in the name of M.M. Varghese, and froze cash deposits amounting to ₹60 lakh across eight bank accounts. Additionally, the agency had frozen the CPM district committee’s accounts due to unexplained funds.
The ED is now in the final stages of preparing the charge sheet, and reports suggest that senior CPM leaders may be named as accused. Radhakrishnan’s statement is expected to be crucial to the case. He has reportedly confirmed receiving the summons, but his appearance before the ED officers will be decided after consultations with the party leadership.
As of now, around 53 individuals, including CPM local leaders and bank staff, have been named as accused, with properties worth ₹143 crore already confiscated. The final charge sheet may see an increase in the number of accused. The ED has sought the court’s permission to auction the confiscated properties and use the proceeds to compensate depositors who lost their money.
Predictably, the CPM has dismissed the summons against its MP as an act of political vendetta.
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