The Kerala High Court on Monday dismissed the plea filed by a former Kerala police officer S. Vijayan, who is accused of falsely implicating Nambi Narayanan in a fake spying case in 1994. The ex-cop had alleged that the ex-ISRO scientist influenced the CBI probe against him, back then, by entering into land deals worth crores with the then investigating officials of the agency.

Justice R Narayana Pisharadi has dismissed Vijayan's plea and the detailed order is awaited. During the previous hearing, the High Court had said that encumbrance certificates produced by the cop do not prove the sale of land and had asked Vijayan to show the actual sale deeds. It also said that sanction to prosecute would be required for the Trial Court to order an investigation.

Vijayan had argued before the High Court that he had placed before the Trial Court encumbrance certificates of several acres of land in the Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu which show Narayanan or his son as the power of attorney holders.

These lands were sold to CBI officials, Vijayan had alleged, and had contended that this material was sufficient for the Trial Court to order an investigation under the Prevention of Corruption Act against the scientist and the agency officials.

Vijayan, along with 17 other former Kerala police and IB officials, including former DGP of Gujarat RB Sreekumar, is facing a CBI probe for allegedly falsely implicating Narayanan and some others in the 1994 spying case. Vijayan and three others were granted anticipatory bail by the High Court in August in the CBI's conspiracy case against them.

However, the agency, in its appeal, has sought cancellation of the anticipatory bail granted to the four accused by the High Court on August 13.

Besides the four, 14 others are named as accused in the case for various offences, including criminal conspiracy, kidnapping and fabrication of evidence in connection with the arrest and detention of Narayanan in the espionage case.

Besides Narayanan, two Maldivian women, Mariyam Rasheeda and Fouziyya Hassan were also arrested and detained in the case. The two women were jailed for over three years before being released. The said two Maldives nationals recently moved the CBI requesting it to place before the Supreme Court their claim for damages of Rs 2 crore from each of the 18 officers who are arrayed as accused in the conspiracy case being probed by the agency.

The women have urged the agency to place their claim for damages before the Apex Court when it hears CBI's appeal against the Kerala High Court's order granting anticipatory bail to the four accused - the former DGP of Gujarat, two former police officers of Kerala, and a retired intelligence official - in the conspiracy case being probed by the agency.

CBI, on June 17, lodged the case against 18 officials of the Kerala Police and Subsidiary Intelligence Bureau (SIB), for various offences like criminal conspiracy, kidnapping and fabrication of evidence, under the IPC in connection with the arrest of Narayanan and the two Maldives nationals Mariyam Rasheeda and Fouziyya Hasan in 1994.

The CBI has registered the case after Narayanan approached the Supreme Court seeking action against the Kerala Police officials and IB officials who were involved in the case. A Committee headed by Justice (retd) D K Jain was formed in 2018 by the Apex Court to look into the allegations against the officials. The FIR was lodged after the Supreme Court passed an order based upon the report submitted by the Committee. The Supreme Court had also directed the Kerala government to pay Rs 50 lakh as compensation for compelling Narayanan to undergo "immense humiliation".



With PTI Inputs

1994 fake espionageNambi NarayananKerala High CourtCBI

Verdictum News Desk