Congress MLA Mathew Kuzhalnadan on Sunday (August 23, 2026) attacked former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan over his remarks about the CMRL case, alleging “unusual corruption” involving crores of rupees credited to the account of his daughter T. Veena.

The Muvattupuzha MLA was responding to Mr. Vijayan’s recent remarks that he, his daughter and other family members had done nothing wrong. Mr. Vijayan had also denied the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) allegations of hawala transactions in a money-laundering case involving Ms. Veena and the Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL).

Mr. Kuzhalnadan alleged that Mr. Vijayan’s repeated assertion that his “hands are clean” was aimed at diverting attention from the alleged corruption.

Mr. Kuzhalnadan said Mr. Vijayan had earlier told him in the Assembly that his allegations were a “blatant lie” during an exchange between them over the issue. The Congress MLA had repeatedly alleged in the Assembly in 2025 that Ms. Veena received money from the CMRL without providing any service.

“But Mr. Vijayan saying that it is a blatant lie was proved wrong by me both inside and outside the Assembly. I had also submitted a privilege notice against his false statement. We all saw how the Speaker withdrew that privilege notice,” he said.

Mr. Kuzhalnadan said Mr. Vijayan’s response on Saturday gave him the impression that the former Chief Minister was afraid of something. “Looking at his reaction yesterday (Saturday), I feel that he is afraid of something. In reality, the situation has reached a stage where, no matter how many times Mr. Vijayan repeats it, even communists do not believe him,” he said.

He said he feared that Mr. Vijayan was finding it difficult to retain his position within his party and the front. Mr. Kuzhalnadan said the ED investigation was not unusual, but alleged that what had happened in Kerala amounted to “unusual corruption.”

He said the case was different as large sums of money was allegedly credited to the former Chief Minister’s daughter’s account while she was not holding any office.

Mr. Kuzhalnadan criticised Mr. Vijayan’s reported remark that the amount involved in the case was small. The Congress MLA referred to an ED press release stating that ₹20.5 crore had been diverted. He said ordinary communists and members of the working class should take note of the statement. “I think it is good for ordinary communists, who are still part of the working class, to understand this. From yesterday’s statement, we can understand that for Ms. Veena and Mr. Vijayan, ₹20 crore is considered a small amount,” Mr. Kuzhalnadan said.

Published - August 23, 2026 08:30 pm IST