Federal agents attacked after Kerala raids on Vijayan homes

Federal agents conducting a money laundering investigation in Kerala faced violent attacks on Wednesday after searching properties linked to former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. Officials from the Enforcement Directorate were targeted by a crowd as they left Vijayan's rented residence in Thiruvananthapuram, concluding a series of coordinated raids across the state.

The searches, conducted at approximately ten to twelve locations, were part of a probe into alleged financial transactions between Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) and Exalogic Solutions Pvt Ltd, a now-defunct IT firm owned by Vijayan’s daughter, T. Veena. In addition to Vijayan's current home, premises linked to his daughter and his son-in-law, former minister Mohammed Riyas, were also searched. The action followed a Kerala High Court decision on Tuesday that dismissed petitions from CMRL and its officials seeking to quash the federal investigation.

The core allegation is that CMRL made payments totaling approximately 1.72 crore rupees to Exalogic Solutions between 2017 and 2021 without receiving any services in return, which investigators are examining as potential money laundering. A separate probe by...