New Delhi, 4 April

The Enforcement Directorate on 4 April searched the premises of a chit fund company of Kerala businessman Gokulam Gopalan, one of the producers of the film 'L2: Empuraan', in connection with alleged foreign exchange violations worth Rs 1,000 crore, official sources said.

Five premises in various states, including Chennai (Tamil Nadu) and Kochi (Kerala), are being searched under the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), sources said.

The action is being taken against Gopalan and his company Sri Gopalan Chit and Finance Company Ltd for alleged FEMA violations worth Rs 1,000 crore and related "unauthorised" transactions with certain NRIs, sources said.

The agency is also believed to be analysing some "fraud" cases against the company for a possible probe under the anti-money laundering law. The second part of the 'Lucifer' film 'L2: Empuraan' planned by the Prithviraj-Mohanlal team has become a subject of heated debate due to its criticism of right-wing politics and cryptic mention of the Gujarat riots. Mohanlal recently expressed regret over the controversy and assured that the controversial portions will be removed from the film.