Chennai: The Kochi unit of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) questioned former Health Minister and AIADMK leader C Vijayabaskar under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in connection with the alleged purchase of gold from a prominent jewellery firm in Kerala.
It is learnt that Vijayabaskar was called for interrogation following a cheating case registered by Kerala Police at Angamaly Police Station in 2016. The ED is probing the money laundering aspect connected to the cheating case.
In 2016, a leading jewellery firm based in Kerala lodged a complaint that a woman named Sharmila, a native of Alappuzha, siphoned off gold worth Rs 2.5 crore. According to police, the woman who claimed she had links with political leaders in Tamilnadu procured the gold on credit and later failed to clear the dues.
An official source was quoted as saying, ‘She claimed that she had influenced Vijayabaskar to purchase a large quantity of gold from the firm. She claimed that the gold that she received was a commission for the deal. The former Minister was summoned to record his statement in connection with this case.’
Recently, the DVAC had filed a first information report on information that Vijayabaskar had indulged in corrupt practices and enriched himself by acquiring assets in his and dependents’ names.