ED seizes Rs 15 crore in cash from L2: Chit Fund Company of Empuraan producer Gokulam Gopalan
Search operations are part of the Forex Administration Act (FEMA) investigation targeting potential violations of Forex Act.
ED began the operation on Friday, which ended on Saturday, raided multiple locations.
Places to search include residential and business addresses of Sree Gokulam Chits and Finance Co. Pvt. Ltd. in Kozhikode in Kerala and Chennai in Tamil Nadu. During the raid, the agency recovered Rs 15 crore in cash and seized several documents deemed to be related to FEMA violations.
ED noted that the company has been accepting subscriptions to CHIT fund of individuals living outside India without proper authorization, which violates FEMA regulations.
Specifically, the company was found to charge Rs 371 crore in cash and Rs 22,074 crore through checks from foreign residents, circumventing the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)’s capital account trading guide. The raid also showed that large amounts of cash payments to overseas residents were in violations in Section 3(b) for women, the company’s forex transactions, the company’s diplomatic transactions were regulated for overseas transactions. ED’s investigation is a reminder of these illegal financial activities. Gopalan or his company did not respond immediately to ED’s claims.
The search was conducted in an ongoing controversy surrounding L2: Empuraan, the second part of Lucifer Trilogy, produced by Gokulam Gopalan along with Antony Perumbavoor and Subaskaran. The film, released on March 27, sparked heated discussions as it indirectly mentions of right-wing politics and the 2002 Gujarat riots.
After the controversy, the filmmaker made changes to the film, and Antony Perumbavoor confirmed the scene that had been removed for more than two minutes. The film is directed by actor Prithviraj Sukumaran, who also starred with Malayalam superstar Mohanlal.
(Input with PTI)
