CMRL paid Rs 95.06 cr to politicians, others; but no probe despite I-T demand

New Delhi: The central government had on Monday informed the High Court of Kerala that it would probe the alleged financial dealings between CMRL and Exalogic Solutions owned by T Veena, daughter of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

It is, however, not clear if the Centre would probe the involvement of government officials, media persons, and others, who had allegedly received money from Ernakulam-based Cochin Minerals And Rutile Ltd (CMRL). The Income-Tax Department had argued that the probe should extend to the alleged payments made to politicians under the Companies Act and Anti-Corruption Act.

Besides probing CMRL Managing Director SN Sasidharan Kartha and other company officials, the I-T department also demanded an investigation of those who had allegedly received money from the firm.

The I-T department estimated that CMRL had paid Rs 95.06 crore to politicians and others between 2013 and 2019. It also demanded the Permanent Account Numbers (PAN) of those who had received more than Rs 20,000 in cash. The Interim Settlement Board, however, did not act on this demand.

I-T department's arguments for further probe
1. CMRL claimed that individuals were paid for business purposes, and hence its expenses were exaggerated. Paying individuals for business purposes is illegal.

2. The company's Managing Director and its Chief Financial Officer colluded to inflate the expenses, which led to a huge loss to shareholders. This violated the Companies Act, SEBI rules, and the Prevention of Corruption Act.

3. The I-T Interim Settlement Board's order mentioned only a few politicians, including Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, as beneficiaries who had received funds. However, the I-T department included the illegal payments to Veena and Exalogic as money paid to politicians. The interim board later ratified the I-T decision.