Supreme Court stays CMRL bribery probe against Pinarayi Vijayan

The Supreme Court of India has stayed the vigilance investigation for seven days against former Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, his daughter Veena T, and his son-in-law P. A. Muhammed Riyas in the Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL)-Exalogic bribery case.

A bench comprising Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana granted the interim relief to allow the petitioners to challenge a Kerala High Court order that had directed the registration of a First Information Report (FIR). While the court allowed the FIR to remain, it paused the investigation to permit an appeal before a division bench of the High Court.

The case involves allegations by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) that CMRL made fraudulent payments totaling Rs 2.78 crore to Exalogic Solutions, a company founded by Veena T, under the guise of IT consultancy services. During the proceedings, the Supreme Court cautioned the ED against exceeding its statutory jurisdiction and meddling in the domain of other investigative agencies.