KOCHI: The National Investigating Agency (NIA) on Thursday said Swapna Suresh, the key accused in the high-profile gold smuggling case, admitted to having a "casual association" with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
Opposing the bail plea of Swapna, the agency also told the NIA special court hearing the case in Kochi that M Sivasankar, the former principal secretary to the Kerala Chief Minister, was her mentor. The court has posted the case for further hearing to Monday (August 10).
The NIA submitted that Swapna, a former employee of the UAE consulate in Thiruvananthapuram, went to Sivasankar's flat to request him to intervene after diplomatic baggage containing about 30 kg of gold was seized by the Customs at the Thiruvanathapuram international airport on July 5. However, Sivasankar did not budge, as per her statement to the NIA.
Reading out Swapna's statement to the NIA, Assistant Solicitor General P Vijay Kumar said she has admitted taking advice from Sivasankar from time to time. Swapna's statement of her "casual association" with the CM is mentioned on the 21st page of the 31-page statement.
Later, briefing reporters, Swapna's counsel said she did not claim she had an influence on the Chief Minister's office. "The NIA seems to be saying that Swapna knows the Chief Minister. But that doesn't prove anything. Several people know the Chief Minister. After all, he is the Chief Minister," he said.
The counsel also said the gold in the possession of Swapna was jewellery given to her for her marriage. "120 sovereigns of jewellery is what any well-to-do Hindu family will have. If it were a gold bar, the situation would have been different," the counsel said.