Daijiworld Media Network - Thiruvananthapuram

Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 19: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has initiated steps to obtain evidence from Dubai in an alleged hawala transactions case in which CPI(M) legislator and former Kerala minister P.A. Mohammed Riyas, son-in-law of former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, is the prime accused.

The move marks a fresh phase in the investigation into suspected financial dealings involving members of the former Chief Minister’s family.

The agency plans to issue a Letter Rogatory, a formal judicial request seeking evidence from a foreign country, after obtaining permission from the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court. It will subsequently approach the Ministry of External Affairs to seek assistance from the relevant authorities in Dubai.

Through the proposed request, the ED intends to obtain details of bank accounts allegedly used to route money through hawala channels.

According to the agency’s allegations, Riyas, who served as Tourism and Public Works Minister in the second Pinarayi Vijayan government from 2021 to 2026, allegedly engaged in hawala transactions along with his associates between July 2024 and July 2025.

The agency has already questioned three close aides of Riyas as part of the investigation.

The hawala probe is separate from the CMRL-Exalogic monthly payment case, in which Vijayan is the prime accused. That case concerns alleged payments made by Kochi-based Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd (CMRL) to Exalogic Solutions, the now-defunct information technology company owned by Vijayan’s daughter, T. Veena.

The payments allegedly made without corresponding services being rendered are at the centre of the investigation.

Veena is the second accused in both cases, while Riyas is the prime accused in the hawala transactions case.

The two investigations have drawn attention as both the state Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) and the ED have registered separate cases in connection with the alleged financial dealings.

The VACB has registered two first information reports (FIRs), while the ED has recorded two Enforcement Case Information Reports (ECIRs), the agency’s equivalent of case registration under the money-laundering law.

The move to seek evidence from Dubai signals the ED’s attempt to trace the alleged overseas financial trail in the hawala case.

The proposed request will require cooperation from the concerned authorities in the United Arab Emirates. The information obtained could help investigators examine the alleged transactions and identify the bank accounts and individuals involved.