Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 2 (IANS): Replying to the allegations levelled by a youth leader of the Indian Union Muslim League, Bineesh Kodiyeri, son of CPI-M state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, denied any knowledge of his arrested friend Anoop Mohammed dealing in drugs.

The IUML youth leader P.K.Firoz on Wednesday said that Bineesh and Mohammed were good friends.

"Mohammed and two others were arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau in Bengaluru recently. Pictures of them being together at a night party at Kumarakom resort during the lockdown in June have now come out. The call details that we have reveal the day the gold smuggling prime accused Swapna Suresh was arrested by the NIA in Bengaluru, Mohammed and Bineesh had made several calls. Mohammed has links with the Malayalam film industry also," said Firoz.

Replying to the allegations, Bineesh said he and Mohammed have been good friends for the past 6 to 7 years.

"Mohammed and I have been good friends. I have loaned him Rs 6 lakhs. He is into the restaurant business in Bengaluru. The news of his arrest (by the NCB) was a shock to all who know him, as no one, including I or his parents had any clue of his drug business," said Bineesh.

"The pictures that have now come out of Mohammed and me were taken long back and I have not visited Kumarakom for a long time now. Firoz is a master when it comes to levelling allegations and I take his statements with a pinch of salt," added Bineesh.

Over the years the name of Bineesh has surfaced regularly and he is known to have wide ranging contacts in business and film circles. His elder brother Binoy was in the dock when a 33-year-old Mumbai-based woman filed a complaint before the police alleging that he had sexually exploited her for several years on the pretext of marriage and they have an eight-year-old child. This case is now waiting the result of a DNA test conducted in Mumbai.