The Customs Department probing the controversial gold smuggling case moved the Kerala High Court on Tuesday to cancel the pre-arrest bail plea filed by suspended IAS officer M Sivasankar. The Customs in its plea allege that Sivasankar pretended illness to avoid interrogation. On Monday, responding to the anticipatory bail of the IAS officer, the Kerala High Court directed the investigation agencies not to arrest him till October 23.
Sivasankar had made all arrangements to pretend illness and get himself admitted to a hospital where his wife works and to avoid answering questions from the Customs, states the plea filed by P Vijayakumar, Assistant Solicitor General, who is the counsel for the Customs Commissionerate. "The pretended illness turned out to be fake in view of the medical opinion given that pain killers will take care of the back pain he complained of. Yet it is surprising he accused the Customs of choosing Friday evening," Customs stated.
The Customs cited the reason to substantiate that everything was planned because Sivasankar had executed a 'vakalath' on October 14 itself without showing the place from where he was adding his signature.
Last Friday, Sivasankar got admitted to a hospital in Thiruvananthapuram while he was taken by the Customs officers for interrogation to Kochi. Sivasankar had expressed cardiac distress and was admitted to a private hospital where his wife works. After it was found that he had no cardiac related illness, he complained of back pain and was shifted to the Medical College Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram.
The Customs also argued through its plea that Sivasankar's anticipatory bail plea is not tenable as he has not even mentioned whether he has been charged in a case with non-bailable offence or that he apprehends arrest.
"The petitioner has not even disclosed to this Hon’ble Court what offences are charged against him in O.R. No. 7 of 2020 in which he has moved the application for bail. The bail application therefore, is entirely unsustainable under Section 438 (Direction for grant of bail to person apprehending arrest) of the Code of Criminal Procedure," it stated.
Following the arrest of key accused in the gold smuggling case, it had come out that Sivasankar had close ties with some of them. He was suspended from service following this.
Watch video of Sivasankar shifted to hospital