Union Minister Muraleedharan takes pot shots Kerala CM, son-in-law

Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 12

After a media report surfaced earlier this week about a Kochi-based mining company allegedly paying money to Veena Vijayan, the daughter of Pinarayi Vijayan, Union minister V. Muraleedharan for the second straight day slammed the Kerala Chief Minister and his son-in-law P.A. Mohammed Riyas, also a state minister.

On Wednesday, a news item had appeared in Malayala Manorama, a leading vernacular daily, on the alleged payment reportedly received by CM's daughter Veena Vijayan from CMRL, a mining company.

The report said that CMRL paid Veena and her IT firm Exalogic a sum of Rs 1.72 crore during 2017-2020 for IT services rendered. The report said that the Income Tax Appellate Board, while examining the tax returns of CMRL, stumbled upon payments made to Veena and her IT firm. It was also found based on the information provided by a few CMRL officials that no services were rendered by her firm to the company.

Muraleedharan, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs, said on Saturday that both Vijayan and Riyas are silent and neither have spoken a word on this blatant corrupt practice.

“Riyas is a person who is known for reacting on issues at the drop of a hat, but after this revelation against his wife, he has gone silent. And where is Vijayan, who is often projected as ‘Captain', a man with two hearts... Why is he silent,” asked Muraleedharan.

First-time Congress legislator Mathew Kuzhalnadan too had raised concerns on Friday about the credibility of the Income Tax (I-T) returns of Veena Vijayan.

Kuzhalnadan claimed that the money received by Veena doesn't reflect in her I-T returns or in that of her husband’s.

“Even the CPI-M has said that she collected the money for the services rendered by her company. If that is the case, why is it missing from the I-T returns,” Kuzhalnadan asked.

Meanwhile, CPI-M state secretary M.V. Govindan on Saturday lost his cool when the media quizzed him on this issue. He slammed the media for attacking Vijayan and his family for 'vested' interests, claiming that there was nothing wrong in the services which Veena and her firm provided to CMRL.