'Charges against Kerala ED officer attempt to malign central agency'

New Delhi: The graft charges made against an ED officer in Kerala recently seem to be a businessman's attempt at "maligning" the agency as he is under the scanner and has skipped multiple summonses, official sources said on Monday.

Last week, the Kerala Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) office in Ernakulam booked an assistant director-rank ED officer in Kochi, alleging that some private persons demanded money from the businessman in lieu of "settling" a money laundering case against him being probed by the federal probe agency.

The issue has been making headlines in the state as Leader of Opposition in the Kerala Assembly V D Satheesan and the ruling CPI(M) alleged widespread corruption in the ED and claimed it was being used to target political rivals of the ruling party at the Centre and extort money from "honest" businessmen.

The ED's case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) was registered after taking cognisance of five FIRs filed by the Kerala Police Crime Branch and Kottarakara Police (Kollam district) against businessman Aneesh Babu, his father Babu George and his mother Anitha Babu.

They were charged by the police for "cheating" people to the tune of Rs 24.73 crore by promising them of importing cashews at low prices through the firm Vazhavila Cashews, Kottarakara.

Sources in the federal agency said the trio were first summoned by the ED Kochi office in October 2021 for questioning but they did not appear. The agency continued with its probe and collected bank statements and versions of the complainants.

Being called twice in October 2024, the family appeared before the ED on October 28 but did not return for post-lunch questioning session, they said.

Sources claimed the businessman made "baseless" allegations before the media against the ED officials, apparently to "derail" the PMLA investigation against him.

The allegation, they said, appears to be an attempt to trigger a "media trial" with an intent to "malign" the image of the ED and "deflect" attention from the ongoing money laundering case.

The complainant businessman has frequently changed his statements and allegations in the media to "prejudice" local public opinion, the sources claimed.

They said the businessman has filed various writ petitions and applications for anticipatory bail before the Kerala High Court and later before the Supreme Court, all of which have been "dismissed".

Sources said the businessman made "contradictory" claims before the media on Sunday as he accused an ED officer in the morning but took the name of some other officer in the afternoon. This shows a "clear intent" to "mislead" the public and "defame" the ED officers, they said.

The ED Kochi unit has now sought a copy of the FIR from the VACB to examine the details of the allegations made by the businessman.

Sources said the agency remains "committed" to upholding the rule of law and welcomes any fair and impartial inquiry and that it does not shy away from transparency or accountability.

ED maintains a zero-tolerance policy towards corruption and is fully committed to uncovering the truth, the sources said, adding that all necessary actions will be taken without fear or favour.