Good Cop, Bad Cop?

Meet M.K.R. Pillai, suave go-getter and alleged pivot of an interstate money laundering scam

- Cithara Paul

In the early 1970s, an unemployed Malayali youth, barely 20, went to Nagaland in search of a job. He soon got selected as a constable in the Nagaland Police. Efficient and hardworking, he rose through the ranks quickly. Within three years, he was promoted as naik; barely a year later, he became havildar.

By 1981, he had become sub-inspector with the Nagaland Armed Police. He was made additional superintendent at the police headquarters, and was awarded the presidential medal for meritorious service in 2005. Even after retirement, he has been calling the shots in Nagaland as ‘consultant’ to the director-general of police.

Meet M.K.R. Pillai, better known as “Pillai Sir” in Nagaland power circles. Those who know him describe him as a “go-getter”, one who handled important assignments in Delhi that Naga officials would hesitate to undertake. Apparently, he always got the work done there, thanks to his connections cutting across party lines.

In the past decade, Pillai has made huge investments in Kerala, building an empire called Sreevalsam Group, which has interests in real estate, finance, jewellery and textiles. He owns around 20 establishments across the state and a few in Delhi and Bengaluru.

Early in June, income tax officers conducted simultaneous raids at his establishments in Kerala, Karnataka, Nagaland and Delhi, over allegations that Sreevalsam Group was involved in “suspicious financial dealings”. They say Pillai is a front for politicians and top bureaucrats in Nagaland and that Central funds running into crores have been diverted to his companies.