'Made to sit on floor'; Delhi ED headquarters closely monitoring Kochi ED officer involved bribe case

KOCHI: ED started an internal investigation after Vigilance registered a case against the Assistant Director of the Enforcement Directorate's Kochi unit, Shekhar Kumar the other day. It is reported that the Zonal Special Director in Chennai has sought an explanation from the officials in Kochi. Shekhar Kumar is now a prime accused in a bribery case.

The ED headquarters in Delhi is closely keeping an eye on the arrest of one of their officials from the Kochi unit. It is alleged that Shekar took a bribe of Rs 2 crore through intermediaries.

The move is to conduct a detailed investigation into the complaint filed against the Kochi unit, which is investigating several financial fraud cases in Kerala. Meanwhile, the ED has not officially responded to the case.

The Vigilance is evaluating documents and evidence to confirm the statements of the three arrested. SP S. Sasidharan told the media that a detailed investigation is ongoing to obtain more evidence and information.

The middlemen arrested are Wilson Varghese of Thammanam, Mukesh Kumar, a native of Rajasthan, and chartered accountant Ranjith Warrier. The vigilance is also examining the information on their phones, bank accounts, and relationships.

The complainant, Aneesh Babu, a native of Kottarakkara and a businessman, reiterated that he faced mental harassment at the ED office. He was summoned to the office and was made to sit on the floor. According to him, the ED officials asked him to look for other options to solve the case. This was the officer's sly way of demanding a bribe which Aneesh understood only later.