THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Three days after the Customs seized 30kg of gold from a consignment addressed to the UAE Consulate here, Swapna Suresh, one of the key suspects in the smuggling racket who has been on the run, on Thursday released an audio clip in which she gave a clean chit to the chief minister, former IT secretary, assembly speaker and ministers.
Customs officials believe she released the clip from her hideout with two objectives. First, she wants to put the entire onus of her attempts to get the consignment released from the airport here on the Charge d’Affaires at the diplomatic mission, thereby divert the focus of investigation. Second, she wants to threaten the investigators, political parties, media and the public at large by saying that she would be forced to commit suicide if they pursue her this way.
“I have contacted almost all ministers in the Left front cabinet at various points of time in connection with different programmes. But you cannot do anything against them or the government as they are innocent. I have no role in the gold smuggling. The only thing I have done was that I had contacted the AC (assistant commissioner of Customs) when the consignment was withheld by the officials. I contacted the officials on the request of the consulate. Other than this, I have no connection with the incident. I was not a witness to any other incidents,” she said.
“The present drama is aimed at the coming elections. But this will not do any harm to the state government. Instead, a family including a mother, father and two children would be affected by the controversy and they would be the losers in the end,” she said.She also said that her family and she are on the brink of suicide. “If anything like that happens, you people will be responsible for it,” she added.
She has chosen to stay safe in a hideout is only because of fear, she said.
However, Customs officials feel it is an attempt to divert the investigation. After having worked in the consulate for about three years, she knows well that it is not easy for the sleuths to quiz the charge d’affaires of a foreign country’s consulate.
According to them, though the consulate’s former PRO Sarith Kumar was taken into custody, they are yet to get the detailed information regarding the other players in the racket. Swapna could be taken into custody for questioning in the coming days, but the way ahead for officials is clear.
Everything was done on the instruction of the charge d’affaires, according to her. In the initial communication, the diplomat feigned ignorance about the bid to smuggle gold through the consignment addressed to him.