The Enforcement Directorate (ED) seized key evidence and property papers during raids at five sites in Thiruvananthapuram on November 7. The operation targeted the Nemom Service Cooperative Bank Ltd. and other parties accused of swindling depositors in a large money‑laundering case.
ED officials from the central forces guarded the sites for hours while investigators searched the locations. The Kochi Zonal Office—overseeing the probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA, 2002)—reported that they recovered a filing of incriminating documents, property records and 15 original fixed‑deposit receipts worth about ₹50 lakh.
The agency said it will intensify the investigation. The fresh stage comes after earlier findings that the bank, once run by a CPI(M)‑led panel, may have mismanaged nearly ₹100 crore. Depositors complained that their savings were not returned, prompting a Cooperative Department inquiry.
Under Section 65 of the State Cooperative Rules, the audit revealed serious irregularities: loans totaling ₹34.26 crore were approved while collateral was only ₹15.55 crore. Of ₹10.73 crore raised through the bank’s Monthly Investment Scheme, only ₹4.83 crore remained in accounts. Investigators also noted that loans were often granted to relatives of bank officials, leaving little chance of recovery, and that the bank paid excessive interest on deposits.
The Cooperative Department named several former secretaries and board members in a ₹60 crore loss case, with one official alone linked to ₹31.63 crore. Earlier, the Crime Branch’s Economic Offences Wing arrested three individuals. Now the bank sits under an administrator and still owes around ₹35 crore, though recovery seems limited.
These developments have drawn political attention just weeks before Kerala’s local body elections. Investor groups have demanded restitution for depositors and tighter oversight of the state’s cooperative banks, citing repeated accusations of political meddling and mismanagement.
Source: ianslive
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