ED names CPM accused in Karuvannur fraud case, confiscates assets of party worth Rs 73 lakhs; Rs 29 cr worth of properties seized so far

KOCHI: The Enforcement Directorate has seized Rs 73 lakh worth of CPM's assets, including bank accounts in the name of the party's Thrissur district secretary, after finding that it had received information about money involved in the Karuvannur Co-operative Bank scam. Three cents of land and Rs 43 lakhs in the accounts were confiscated.

This is the first time that CPM has been accused and their property was confiscated in this case. Including this, properties worth Rs 29 crore of ten accused were confiscated.

Three cents of land in Porathissery was registered in the name of MM Varghese, CPM's district secretary. It was registered for 10 lakh rupees per cent. Rs 30 lakhs was confiscated for this. The real price is likely to be much higher.

Amounts in eight accounts of branch committees were confiscated. Two are fixed deposits in the name of Thrissur district committee. Two accounts in the name of Iringalakuda Area Committee have also been confiscated. Other accounts belong to local committees.

The ED had informed the court dealing with the Prohibition of Money Laundering Act in Kochi that the CPM state leadership was involved in the fraud. The agency alleged that crores were lent to non-members outside the bank's limits.

Before the Lok Sabha elections, the Income Tax Department had frozen the CPM's investments worth Rs 4.8 crore in Thrissur as amounts not filed in tax returns. ED says arrested former CPM leader PR Aravindakshan was the mastermind behind the scam.

9 accused took loans and did not repay

The other nine accused are those who illegally took loans of crores and did not repay them. The names of those accused earlier and the details of confiscated properties are not available.

The ED found that between 2011 and 2019, a loan fraud of more than Rs 100 crore took place.

The ED is investigating the money smuggling as money laundering. Rs 87.85 crores worth of properties of accused and benami were confiscated by ED months ago.