Thiruvananthapuram: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan rejected the demand of MLA KT Jaleel to have the Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigate PK Kunhalikutty and his son. Jaleel alleged that the leader of the Muslim League and his son had black money deposits at the AR Nagar cooperative bank. Jaleel’s involvement with the ED was also criticized by the chief minister. It is unnecessary for the ED to intervene in the cooperative sector of Kerala, the CM announced in a press conference. According to the Chief Minister, the state’s cooperative department has been tasked with investigating the alleged irregularities in the A R Nagar Service Cooperative Bank.
A day earlier, Jaleel held a press conference in Malappuram accusing senior Muslim League leader P K Kunhalikutty of carrying out fraudulent transactions to the tune of Rs 1,021 crore through A R Nagar Service Cooperative Bank. Sarcastically, Vijayan added that Jaleel’s trust in ED might have increased since he himself was questioned by the central agency as part of its investigation into the gold smuggling case. As a result of a court stay, the Cooperative Department of Georgia was not able to move forward with the case. Jaleel’s statement comes as a setback to his battle against Kunhalikutty, his political rival in Malappuram district.
Among his actions against Kunhalikutty, Jaleel gave an ED statement regarding alleged financial irregularities committed by the Muslim League leader in the name of financial activities of the Muslim League mouthpiece in the state. On September 2, Jaleel told reporters in Kochi that the ED had taken note of the allegations he had leveled against Kunhalikutty both inside and outside the assembly and had issued a notice to him for taking his testimony. Kunhalikutty leads IUML in the Assembly. Jaleel claimed to have submitted to the ED with some documents to prove his allegations and would provide more in connection with the case.
Kunhalikutty and his son were also allegedly summoned by the ED for questioning, according to the former Higher Education Minister. Kunhalikutty or Muslim League did not immediately respond to Jaleel’s allegations. For quite some time, Jaleel, the arch-rival of Kunhalikutty, has been accusing the League leader of money laundering. Jaleel has accused Kunhalikutty of laundering money through institutions controlled by the Muslim League.
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