Decoding Kerala gold smuggling case and its impact on Vijayan government

The Kerala gold smuggling case is related to a seizure of 30 kg of gold from a diplomatic cargo at the Thiruvananthapuram airport in July this year. The gold was approximately worth Rs 15 crore. It was found in the diplomatic cargo addressed to the UAE Consulate General Office in Thiruvananthapuram.

What made the seizure sensational is that it was recovered from a diplomatic cargo which enjoys immunity from routine examination by the customs department officials at airports.

HOW THE GOLD WAS SEIZED THEN?

There was a specific input about gold being concealed in the cargo for smuggling into Kerala. It was part of the diplomatic cargo from Dubai. The sender was a Sharjah-based firm, Al-Zatar Spcies and the cargo was listed as bathroom fittings, noodles, biscuits and dates.

What raised suspicion of the customs officers was the turning of a former local PRO of the UAE Consulate to claim the cargo. Sarith Kumar had worked with the Consulate General and had been removed from the job in 2019. The Consulate had informed the customs department that Sarith Kumar was no longer authorised to receive any cargo on its behalf.

The customs officers denied Sarith Kumar the cargo and decided instead to open the cargo in the presence of Consulate officials a requirement for examining a diplomatic parcel.

The smuggling racket was busted.

PROBE REACHES KERALA CMO

Sarith Kumar was arrested. He pointed fingers at Swapna Prabha Suresh aka Swapna Mohammed, who is a resident of Dubai and was an employee of the Consulate for around three years before being sacked in 2019.

Swapna emerged as the prime accused in the gold smuggling case. She led the investigating agencies, the NIA and the ED, after Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking probe by central agencies, to IAS officer M Sivasankar, presently suspended.

Sivasankar was CM Pinarayi Vijayan’s principal secretary and also the head of the Kerala State Information Technology Infrastructure Limited (KSITIL). Probe later found that he had recommended Swapna for a position with the KSITIL which required the applicant to be a graduate. She was not eligible.

After Sivasankar’s connection appeared in the gold smuggling case, heat turned on CM Vijayan. He removed Sivasankar as principal secretary.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PINARAYI AND KERALA POLITICS

Sivasankar was questioned several times by the three central agencies the NIA, the ED and the customs department. He was finally arrested on October 27 on the charges of money laundering in the smuggling case.

The ED told a Kerala court in its affidavit that Sivasankar helped the gold smuggling case prime accused Swapna park proceeds from the smuggling deal in a bank locker and kept a tab on all transactions.

Sivasankar has become the political noose that the Opposition in Kerala is using to tighten around CM Vijayan. The Congress and the BJP in Kerala have demanded resignation of CM Vijayan. The Congress workers have marched to the chief minister’s residence to press their demand for his resignation. The BJP took a step further, demanding questioning of Pinarayi Vijayan in the Kerala gold smuggling case.

Kerala BJP chief K Surendran has alleged involvement of more officials and also of two state ministers in the Kerala gold smuggling case. He said, “The chief minister should be questioned to ascertain his role in the case. Vijayan had introduced Swapna to Sivasankar.”

Chief Minister Vijayan has dismissed the charge saying, “The Opposition is trying to foist the doings of officials on the government.” The ruling CPI-M has said Sivasankar will face the law and punished if found guilty while claiming that there is nothing to blame the Vijayan government for in the Kerala gold smuggling case.

Kerala will go to the assembly polls next year. The Kerala gold smuggling case has cropped up at a time when ruling CPI-M is eyeing another term and the principal Opposition party, the Congress hopes to make a comeback. The BJP is trying hard to make an imprint in the state's electoral politics.