Bribery case: ED officer Shekhar Kumar questioned for six hours, arrest likely

KOCHI: Shekhar Kumar, the former Assistant Director of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) Kochi unit and the main accused in a bribery case involving a demand of Rs 2 crore, was questioned by the Vigilance Department for six hours on Monday. He was released afterwards but has been asked to appear again today. Sources indicate that an arrest could happen soon.

Kumar was questioned at the Vigilance headquarters in Ernakulam, where he arrived around 10:45 AM, accompanied by his lawyer. The session was led by SP S. Sasidharan of the Vigilance Special Cell. Investigators presented key evidence, including digital communication between Kumar and Ranjith Warrier, the fourth accused and a chartered accountant, allegedly exchanged through a special mobile app. Kumar was reportedly unable to provide convincing answers to several questions.

SP Sasidharan told Kerala Kaumudi that Kumar was cooperating with the investigation, but further questioning is needed to clarify some important points.

The Kerala High Court had earlier granted Kumar anticipatory bail with the condition that he must appear before the investigation team within two weeks. He turned up just before the deadline expired.

The case relates to a bribe demand made to drop proceedings against a Kollam-based cashew businessman named Aneesh. The other accused in the case include Wilson Varghese from Thammanam and Mukesh from Rajasthan.