Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 18 (IANS): Enforcement Directorate on Monday raided two more Cooperative banks in Thrissur in connection with the Karuvannur Service Cooperative Bank loan scam case in Kerala.
The ED action comes a day prior to the scheduled appearance of top CPI(M) legislator and former Minister A.C . Moideen at Kochi on Tuesday.
Vice-president of the Kerala Bank and a top former CPI(M) legislator M.K. Kannan was also asked to be present at one of the Cooperative banks where the raid is underway.
In a surprise move, the probe officials arrived at the Thrissur Service Cooperative Bank and the Ayanthole Cooperative Bank, early this morning.
As per reports, ED officials are engaged in similar operations at half-a-dozen other locations in Thrissur and Ernakulam districts.
Ever since it unearthed over Rs 150 crore in connection with the bank scam a few weeks ago, the central agency is on an alert with top CPI(M) leaders like Moideen coming under its radar.
Both the Congress and the BJP have charged the CPI(M) and its leadership with being the kingpins in this massive scam.
Moideen is under the ED radar ever since his house in Thrissur was raided early this month and has already appeared once before the probe agency at its Kochi office.
The ED has been in hot pursuit in this case and has arrested two persons -- P. Satheesh Kumar and P. Kiran, so far.
The ongoing raid is being seen as a follow up on the interrogation of the two arrested.
Speculations were rife that the two-time former CPI(M) Lok Sabha member P.K.Biju might be asked to appear before the central agency.
As per the ED sleuths, Rs 150 crore was siphoned off from Karuvannur Service Cooperative Bank Ltd in Thrissur.
The investigation has revealed that on the instruction of certain persons, who were district-level leaders and committee members of a "certain" political party, holding top positions, loans were disbursed by the bank manager through the agent in cash to "non-member benamis" by mortgaging properties of not so well-off individuals without their
knowledge.
It has come to light that many 'benami loans' were disbursed on the instructions of Moideen.