‘FCRA violation’ case: ED initiates probe against Kerala Oppn leader V D Satheesan

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has initiated a preliminary probe against senior Congress legislator V D Satheesan, the Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Assembly, in connection with alleged violations of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) in relation to the mobilisation of funds from abroad for a rehabilitation project.

The ED investigation comes close on the heels of a state Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) probe into a complaint regarding Satheesan’s alleged mobilisation of money from abroad for a scheme to rehabilitate victims of the 2018 Kerala floods from his constituency, North Paravur. As part of the rehabilitation scheme, named ‘Punarjani’, funds had been mobilised to build houses for flood victims.

Satheesan said he welcomed the ED probe and that the complaint against him was baseless. “It is quite natural that the ED looks into a matter probed by the VACB. The ED is the agency to look into FCRA violations. I will cooperate with the ED probe. I hope with this probe, the attacks on me will come to an end. This complaint is baseless. I have all the documents to prove my innocence in this matter,” he said.

Satheesan said Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had brought the VACB probe against him just to bring the ED into the picture. “The VACB cannot probe an FCRA violation. But, Vijayan wanted to take the Opposition leader to the ED,” he said.