Kochi, June 6 (IANS) The Karuvannur Cooperative Bank fraud case has entered a crucial stage with the PMLA court observing that there is prima facie evidence against CPI(M) leaders named in the case.

The court said that the accused, including MLA A.C. Moideen, MP K. Radhakrishnan and former Thrissur district secretary M.M. Varghese, will have to face trial.

The court has issued summons to 28 accused persons, including senior CPI(M) leaders, directing them to appear before the court on the 4th of next month.

The development has brought renewed political focus on the case, which is being described as one of the biggest cooperative sector frauds reported in Kerala.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED), which is investigating the money laundering angle in the case, had filed its final charge sheet naming the CPI(M) and three former district secretaries of the party as accused.

The final charge sheet included 27 additional accused, taking the total number of accused in the case to 83.

According to the ED, around Rs 180 crore was generated through the alleged loan fraud at the bank.

The agency has so far attached assets worth around Rs 128 crore linked to the accused.

The ED’s investigation followed allegations that funds obtained through fraudulent loans were diverted through various channels.

The case surfaced after complaints prompted the Cooperation Department to conduct an inspection, which revealed large-scale irregularities at the Thrissur-based bank.

Initially, the department had estimated the fraud at around Rs 108 crore, following which the police registered a case against six persons, including bank officials and CPI(M)-linked individuals.

The investigation was later transferred to the Crime Branch, which has registered cases against 31 accused.

With the PMLA court’s latest observation, the Karuvannur case is expected to remain a major political and legal challenge for the CPI(M) as the proceedings move forward.

Former Congress legislator Anil Akkara had long worked overtime to bring out this case in the open.

–IANS

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