THIRUVANATHAPURAM: In an unprecedented act, the Crime Branch has registered a case against Enforcement Directorate officials for allegedly forcing gold smuggling case accused Swapna Suresh to give a statement against Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the reverse hawala case.
The FIR was filed by the Crime Branch before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court II, Ernakulam.
As per the FIR, ED officials who had questioned Swapna on August 12 and 13 last year had forced her to give false statements against the CM with an intention to implicate him in the case.
The FIR said the charges of conspiracy, threatening, framing an incorrect document with intent to cause injury, abetment, false entry of statement etc will stand against ED officials.
The Crime Branch action came on the basis of the report filed by Additional SP E S Bijumon, who had earlier probed the production and circulation of an audio clip that reportedly belonged to Swapna.
Swapna was reportedly heard saying that ED officials were arm-twisting her to give statements against the CM. During the probe, a few women cops gave statements saying that they had witnessed Swapna being forced to testify that the CM had a role in the case.
After the probe team filed a report, the government had sought legal opinion on registering the case against the ED officials. The legal opinion was that the police can register a case against the ED on the basis of the statements of the cops.
Crime Branch SP A Shanawaz will be probing the case against the ED.