The Supreme Court stayed the CMRL bribery investigation against Pinarayi Vijayan and his family for a week. The pause enables them to challenge the FIR order before a Kerala High Court division bench.
Thiruvananthapuram,Oct 21, 2026 15:26 IST
The Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed for a week the investigation against former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his family members in the alleged CMRL bribery case, news agency Press Trust of India reported.
CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan welcomed the decision, saying it upheld the rule of law. State Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala, however, said the court had not set aside the FIR and claimed that the action taken by the Congress-led UDF government had been proved correct.
In a statement, Chennithala said the investigation had been stayed for a week to allow Vijayan and the others to file an appeal and argue the matter before the Kerala High Court.
Govindan told reporters that the Supreme Court's order was encouraging for the CPI(M), according to PTI. He said the party had maintained from the beginning that the case was politically motivated and would be challenged both legally and politically.
Govindan claimed that the Supreme Court said the Kerala High Court should have considered the appeal filed by Vijayan, his daughter Veena T and her husband P A Mohamed Riyas against the October 9 order directing the registration of an FIR against them. “The rule of law has been upheld by the Supreme Court verdict,” he said.
Chennithala said the state government had carefully examined the Enforcement Directorate's letter seeking the registration of a case against Vijayan, Veena and Riyas under the Prevention of Corruption Act and had not acted in haste.
He said the government had sought legal advice and ordered a preliminary inquiry. An FIR was registered only after the High Court directed it, he added. Chennithala claimed that the Supreme Court's verdict showed that it had accepted the government's approach.
A Supreme Court bench of Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana allowed Vijayan and the others to approach a division bench of the High Court against the October 9 order, PTI reported.
On October 15, the Kerala High Court rejected applications by Vijayan, Veena and Riyas seeking permission to appeal against the October 9 order. The court held that “an accused in a corruption case has no legal right to be heard before registering the FIR”. The appeals followed the registration of two FIRs by Special Investigation Unit-1 of the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau against Vijayan and his family members.
The Enforcement Directorate had sought the registration of a case based on evidence gathered during its investigation and searches under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. It alleged that CMRL made fraudulent payments of Rs 2.78 crore to Veena's now-defunct company, Exalogic Solutions, in the guise of payments for IT consultancy services. The Supreme Court has now paused the investigation for a week, allowing Vijayan and the other petitioners to approach the High Court division bench.
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