THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state police have reportedly received legal advice to not initiate a probe into the complaint by DGP (Prisons) Rishi Raj Singh pertaining to the release of a voice clip allegedly of gold smuggling case accused Swapna Suresh.
As per the advice received from the advocate-general (AG), the police investigation will not be feasible based on the complaint from the Prisons DGP as it has been proved that the alleged incident was not reported in the jurisdiction of the prisons department. However, the advice in the written format has not been handed over to the police, sources said.
On Thursday, the prisons department conducted a preliminary inquiry and submitted a report to Rishi Raj Singh. The report submitted by DIG (South Zone) Ajayakumar reportedly stated that the prisons department could not confirm the veracity of the clip.
Swapna told the DIG that the voice bears an uncanny resemblance to hers, but she could not recollect the time, location and the person she had spoken to. The report also suggested a police probe to find out the source of the clip as the preliminary probe ruled out the possibility of recording the clip at Attakulangara women’s prison where Swapna is now lodged. In the voice clip, she is heard saying that the investigating agencies probing the gold smuggling case had forced her to name Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and that she had refused to do so.
She was also asked to sign documents regarding her statement without giving her enough time to go through the same. A private news portal had released Swapna’s audio clip on Wednesday night.Soon after, the DIG visited the jail and asked Swapna about the details. Initially, Swapna admitted that the voice was hers.