A day after allegations of financial fraud were levelled against CPI (M) State Secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan’s son, Binoy Balakrishnan, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that the government won’t be probing the case.
“The government hasn’t received any complaint regarding this case. The media reports (about the case) are being politically misused. If anyone has been working in a manner that is not benefitting to the party, he will be expelled. Binoy (Balakrishnan) has been working in Dubai for the last 15 years,” said Vijayan.
Binoy has been accused of swindling a Dubai-based firm to the tune of Rs 13 crore. Documents published in the Malayalam media on Wednesday showed that Hasan Ismaeel Abdulla Almarzooqi, a partner in the firm JAAS Tourism LLC, had written to the Indian government urging them to probe the matter.
Meanwhile, the BJP wrote to the Enforcement Directorate, urging it to take action against Kodiyeri Balakrishnan and his two sons – Binoy and Bineesh – for violating provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act and for amassing wealth disproportionate to their known sources of income.
“Kodiyeri Balakrishnan is a highly influential political leader in Kerala. He was the Home Minister in a previous Left Front government and is now a Politburo member of the CPI (M). He as well his sons have amassed wealth disproportionate to their known sources of income. His sons are involved in high-profile business transactions and are known to be involved in money laundering and hawala transactions,” the letter written by BJP State General Secretary AN Radhakrishnan to the ED says.
It adds, “The political influence of Balakrishnan is being misused by him as well as his sons for taking part in illegal transactions for financial benefits. The connections Binoy and Bineesh Kodiyeri has with business tycoons in the Middle East countries is a well-known fact. Now the illegal activities of the sons of Kodiyeri Balakrishnan have been exposed by the complaint of Hasan Ismaeel Abdulla Almarzooqi, a UAE citizen who was cheated by Binoy.”
The letter also says that there is every reason to suspect the money was brought into India through hawala channels. “It is reliably understood that the sons of Kodiyeri Balakrishnan are kingpins of hawala operations in Kerala and have not faced any action in accordance with law only for the reason that they are enjoying the political patronage of Kodiyeri Balakrishnan,” it alleges.
Opposition leader, Ramesh Chennithala, also urged the government to probe the issue. He added that the Chief Minister’s stand to not probe the matter was anti-democratic and said that he would write to Vijayan demanding a probe in the case.