KOCHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a chargesheet (prosecution complaint) against senior Congress leader and MLA K Babu in connection with a money laundering case related to amassing disproportionate assets.

The chargesheet was submitted before the PMLA Special court in Kochi on Monday.

The ED’s investigation revealed that Babu, who served as a public servant between July 1, 2007, and May 5, 2016—including his tenure as a minister in the UDF government—acquired assets worth Rs 25.82 lakh, allegedly disproportionate to his known sources of income.

The agency stated that he obtained these proceeds of crime in the form of movable and immovable properties.

Last year, the ED had attached Babu’s properties as part of the money laundering probe.

The case initially began with the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) Ernakulam Special Cell, which registered a Disproportionate Assets (DA) case against Babu and his close aides, Baburam and Mohanan.

However, the Vigilance later gave a clean chit to Baburam and Mohanan and filed a chargesheet against Babu in March 2018.

Based on this chargesheet, the ED initiated its money laundering probe, during which the former minister was questioned multiple times.