Home Ministry orders NIA inquiry into gold smuggling case in Kerala

Spread the love

The Union Home Ministry has ordered an inquiry by the NIA (National Investigation Agency) into the smuggling of gold at Thiruvananthapuram Airport. The Ministry of Home Affairs has given information about this by tweeting.

The tweet from the Twitter handle of the Home Ministry spokesperson states that this is an organized smuggling operation which can have serious consequences for national security.

What is the matter?

In Kerala, cases of corona virus infection have started to increase once again, but currently there is a case of gold smuggling in Kerala. The people of Kerala have a special love for sleeping anyway.

Nearly 30 kg of gold was recovered by customs officials from Thiruvananthapuram International Airport on Sunday. Its cost is said to be around 13.5 crores.

This gold was being brought in diplomatic bags through diplomatic channels. But this matter has been gaining so much attention that it has diverted attention from corona infection.

The name of a mysterious but powerful woman is coming out from the inquiry of the person who went to take this gold. How important this matter is becoming can be gauged from the fact that Chief Minister P. Vijayan had to remove his principal secretary M. Shivshankar from his post.

For the first time in the last two years, the Congress-led UDAF has demanded the resignation of the Chief Minister. The Congress had demanded a CBI inquiry because of the alleged close relationship between the Principal Secretary to the CM and the mysterious woman.

Ramesh Chennithala of the Leader of Opposition Congress in Kerala told BBC Hindi, “I have written a letter to the Prime Minister demanding a CBI inquiry and said that the CBI should also include the Chief Minister’s Office within the scope of its investigation. That woman from that department She is closely associated with a minister whose own chief minister is “.

See also  Leaders Emphasize Harmony and Unity at Book Launch Event

Gold smuggling in bathroom accessories

On Sunday, customs officials decided to open diplomatic bags from the diplomatic channel. This bag came three days ago but was lying at the airport.

They were informed of some ‘special items’ in that bag. Custom officials took permission from the Indian Ministry of External Affairs for this.

On opening the bag, they found gold in the toilet used. The gold was melted in such a way that it would fit perfectly in the toilets.

The diplomatic bag was supposed to go to the UAE consulate address.

The interrogation of Sareeth Kumar, a former public relations officer of the consulate, revealed that a woman was also involved in the case, who is said to be very close to the chief secretary to the chief minister. Since this case, she is being told to be a female absconder.

Who is that woman?

Kavita (name changed) was an associate of Sarith Kumar at the consulate but when she quit her job, she was appointed as a marketing and licensing officer under Spacespark, an initiative of Kerala State Information Technology Infrastructure Limited.

Prior to this she was the Human Resources Manager at Air India SATS. Which is a joint venture between Air India and Sigapur Airport Terminal Services.

The employees union president LS Sibu had complained of fraud against him due to his alleged work in this company.

In February last year, the internal complaint committee of the institution closed the investigation due to lack of evidence. The same year, the Kerala High Court accepted the plea of ​​Sibu and ordered the Kerala Police to complete the investigation within six months.

According to the report, the information and technology department was not aware that a case of cheating was pending against those women. The government has immediately removed the woman from the space park after she was named through Sareeth Kumar, the main accused in the gold smuggling.

See also  PNB Starts Loan at your Home Comfort

Political allegation

The most direct impact of this whole case has been on the Chief Minister’s office. Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister and Secretary of Information and Technology Department M. Shivshankar has been removed from his post.

Leader of Opposition and Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala said, “Shivshankar was trying to save the woman and we feel that she is also involved in this whole deal. Those women managed to get a job at Spacepark while their previous The record is controversial. All these should be investigated by the CBI. “

Chief Minister Vijayan says that he removed his principal secretary only because his name came up in this case. Defending his Principal Secretary, the Chief Minister said, “This does not mean that a legal case is made against Shivshankar. The matter is only that his name is right to continue in the Chief Minister’s Office due to his name being attached to the accused in this case.” Is not. “

MB Rajesh, a former CPM MP, told BBC Hindi, “This will not affect Chief Minister Vijayan’s image. He acted swiftly and removed Shivshankar from his post. The rest of the allegations are baseless. The most important question is Who is benefiting from the smuggling of gold. “

But political analyst Gauridasan Nair told the BBC, “There is nothing public that can connect Vijayan’s office to the case. But the controversy surrounding it is an embarrassment for the government and Vijayan. That is true It is said that he has removed Shivshankar from his post but it is likely that the dispute will end immediately. is less.”

See also  China is leaving behind America and becoming a superpower of technology?

Amidst all this, Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram Shashi Tharoor has supported the demand of CBI investigation of his Congress colleague Ramesh Chennithala.

Tharoor said that he is ready for his investigation in this matter.

Tharoor said, “To gain political advantage, some people are spreading the rumor that the accused got a job in the Consulate on my recommendation. This is a sheer lie. To divert attention from the whole case and the questions raised through Congress, the accused This is a conspiracy of supporters of political groups associated with “.

Gold sweet

In Kerala, you are a believer of any religion, but gold is loved by everyone. In terms of gold consumption, Kerala is second only to the neighboring state of Tamil Nadu.

The high tax rate is also a reason for the demand for gold smuggling. It is the most preferred item of smugglers in Gulf countries due to its low price. Gold is brought only by hiding in a bag, but some people smuggle it by hiding it in certain parts of their body.

In the last two years, officials have seized around 600 kg of gold. In the year 2018-19, 220 kg gold was seized, while last year it doubled and about 444 kg gold was seized.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *