Synopsis
The Kerala High Court has granted temporary relief to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, his daughter Veena, and CMRL by ordering a status quo in the SFIO financial fraud case for two months. The ruling addresses significant legal questions raised in the ongoing investigation.Key Takeaways
- Kerala High Court orders a two-month status quo.
- SFIO complaint relates to alleged financial fraud.
- Vijayan and Veena plan to contest the ruling.
- Legal and political ramifications anticipated.
- Fundamental questions of law acknowledged by the court.
Kochi, April 16 (NationPress) In a significant development, the Kerala High Court provided a measure of relief to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, his daughter Veena Vijayan, and the Kochi-based mining entity CMRL. A vacation bench on Wednesday mandated a status quo for the next two months concerning a trial court's ruling to acknowledge a complaint lodged by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) in a financial fraud matter.
The interim directive was issued by vacation bench judge, Justice T.R. Ravi, while addressing the appeal made by Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd (CMRL) against the decision rendered on April 11 by the Additional District and Sessions Judge-VII, Ernakulam.
The high court acknowledged that the petition raised fundamental legal questions necessitating further examination.
"The Additional Solicitor General (ASG) has acknowledged the notice for the first respondent. Notices are to be issued to respondents 2 to 12. The ASG will present their counter-affidavit. Given that a crucial question regarding the cognizance has been raised, and issues related to the applicability of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (CrPC) and the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) have been questioned, the court has directed the respondents to maintain the status quo as of today, for a duration of two months," the court instructed.
"The matter should be revisited immediately after the court reopens," the order stated.
Recently, the SFIO had submitted its charge sheet regarding an alleged illegal transaction involving Veena Vijayan's now-defunct IT company, Exalogic, and CMRL. The investigation revealed that her firm purportedly received a monthly fee of approximately Rs 2.70 crore from CMRL for mining approvals.
These transactions, according to the SFIO, were executed without any legitimate services being performed.
The SFIO had lodged its charge sheet at an economic offenses court here, and the process for issuing summons to all implicated parties was underway when this crucial relief was granted.
Coincidentally, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had also initiated a preliminary inquiry into this matter. Previously, both the Karnataka and Kerala High Courts had dismissed petitions filed by Veena and the state-run KSIDC, which possesses a stake in CMRL.
Both Vijayan and the CPI-M have expressed their intention to contest the case both legally and politically.
