Enforcement Directorate attaches properties of V M Radhakrishnan

Palakkad: The Enforcement Directorate has provisionally attached assets worth Rs 23 crore belonging to business man V.M. Radhakrishnan (Chakku Radhakrishnan) in connection with the Malabar Cements corruption case. As many as 11 properties that include hotels in Thiruvanathapuram, Palakkad and Kozhikode have been served notice by the Enforcement officials at Kochi and Kozhikode. ED has invoked Prevention of Money Laundering (PML) Act, 2002, for attaching the properties.

All the properties were bought by Mr Radhakrishnan during 2004-2008 when there was rampant corruption in Malabar Cements including that of supply of fly ash by his firm. Radhakrishnan reacted to the notice of ED by stating that he would challenge it in the court of law.  However, it is learnt from sources close to the ED that in most of the cases, the adjudication authority had been endorsing the attachment of properties done as per the PML Act. The sale of all the attached properties has been freezed and the concerned sub-registrar offices have been intimated about the same.