VACB recommends CBI investigation against Opposition Leader V.D. Satheesan for FCRA violation

The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) has recommended a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry based on its findings that Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan, might have violated the Foreign Currency Regulation Act, (FCRA) 2010, by marshalling foreign funds through U.K.-based charity foundations, ostensibly to rehabilitate 2018 flood victims in his constituency in Paravur, Ernakulam.

The VACB had made the recommendation in early 2025. However, the information was made public on Sunday, sparking a political controversy.

Mr. Satheesan has termed the emergence of the report politically motivated, suspiciously timed and an election-year propaganda stunt by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] to crowd out issues bedevilling the government, including the Sabarimala gold theft, from public conversation.

He said the VACB had investigated the accusation and failed to make out a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act. He said the charitable foundation involved in the Punarjani flood rehabilitation scheme had FCRA clearance from the Central government.

Moreover, the charitable foundation handled the funds directly. The transactions were legal, audited, above board and in the public realm, he claimed.

Meanwhile, the government has sought legal opinion in the matter. Law Minister P. Rajeeve told reporters that the General Administration department (GAD) has to take a call. The stage has not reached for an official response from the government, he said.

Officials said the VACB had found no case in which Mr. Satheesan had directly received funds from abroad into his account.

Nevertheless, the VACB found that Mr. Satheesan had visited Birmingham in 2019 at the behest of a charitable foundation and solicited funds from donors, including a UK-based charitable institution, purportedly for rebuilding flood-damaged houses and distributing sewing machines to families who lost their livelihoods to the deluge.

Moreover, the VACB determined that the charitable foundation promoting Punarjani had received funds from different countries in its FRCA and current accounts. Hence, the agency noted in its final report that the CBI was the competent agency to investigate the matter.

Officials said the Union Ministry of Home Affairs had jurisdiction over the matter, not the State government, as widely assumed. Hence, they noted that the State government’s consent was not required for the CBI to investigate allegations of FCRA violations against Mr. Satheesan.

“A political decision from the government demanding a CBI inquiry is not mandatory in the case. However, the government could forward the report to the CBI for necessary action,” a senior official said.