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Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 11 (IANS) A fresh controversy has erupted in Kerala after documents emerged confirming that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had summoned Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s son Vivek Kiran in the Life Mission money-laundering case.
The revelation coincides with Chief Minister Vijayan’s meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi, adding a sharp political edge to the development.
According to a report published by a leading local daily on Saturday, the ED had issued summon number KCCEDO/2023/769 to “Vivek Kiran, son of Pinarayi Vijayan, Cliff House, Thiruvananthapuram” under sections 50 (2) and 50 (3) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The notice, signed by then ED assistant director PK Anand, directed him to appear at the agency’s Kochi office at 10:30 am on February 14, 2023, and produce documents including Aadhaar, PAN, bank details and details of properties held by him and his family.
However, Vivek did not appear before the central agency and no follow-up action was taken.
The document is listed as “active” on the ED’s official “Verify Your Summons” portal, confirming its authenticity.
The summons was issued as part of the investigation into the Wadakkanchery Life Mission housing project, which the agency alleged involved bribery of Rs 4.4 crore.
The project, funded by the UAE Red Crescent through the UAE Consulate for the 2018 flood victims, was implemented by Unitech Builders.
The ED found that Santosh Eapen, managing partner of Unitech, had allegedly bribed Consulate officials and M. Sivasankar, the then Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, who was later arrested after three days of questioning in Kochi.
ED had also interrogated accused Swapna Suresh and Sarith in the gold smuggling case as part of the same investigation.
The agency had also sought details from UAE authorities regarding Vivek’s employment in Abu Dhabi, although the outcome is not known.
At the time, citing the ED’s failure to proceed with the summons, the Congress had said that the BJP and CPI(M) were “colluding” to protect the chief minister’s family.
The emergence of the document is now raising questions about the agency’s silence and the political implications of the investigation that briefly reached the Chief Minister’s doorstep.
Meanwhile, while ED officials are maintaining silence on the summons to Vivek, they say that the case has not been closed.
–IANS
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