Kerala MLA P V Anvar accuses ADGP Ajith Kumar of gold smuggling and solar case cover-up
MALAPPURAM: Left-backed independent MLA from Nilambur, P V Anvar, escalated his sharp criticism of Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) M R Ajith Kumar on Monday.
Anvar made serious allegations against Kumar, focusing on the construction of Kumar's new 'luxury' residence near Kowdiar Palace in Thiruvananthapuram. He also accused him of involvement in gold smuggling and facilitating the acquittal of several Congress leaders in cases related to the solar scam culprit Saritha S Nair.
During a press conference in Malappuram, Anvar highlighted the luxury residence that Kumar is constructing in Thiruvananthapuram.
"Kumar is building a residence near Kowdiar Palace in Thiruvananthapuram. For the residence, 10 cents of land were registered in Kumar's name, and 12 cents were registered in his brother-in-law's name. Land in this area costs between ₹60 lakh and ₹75 lakh per cent. The general belief is that Kumar is not a wealthy person. An investigation should be conducted to determine the source of income for constructing such a residence on land of such high value," Anvar said.
Anvar also criticised the police for failing to properly investigate the Ridan Basil case.
"Ridan Basil, a native of Edavanna, was found dead under mysterious circumstances on a hilltop in Edavanna last year (April 2023). Ridan’s best friend, Muhammed Shaan, was arrested in the case. I met with Ridan's wife and family. They claim that Shaan could not have killed Ridan. So how was Shaan arrested in the case? The police forced Ridan's wife to give a statement that Shaan killed Ridan to live with her, as they alleged Shaan and Ridan's wife were in a relationship.” Anvar said.
“She was assaulted by the police to agree with this fabricated story. The police concocted this relationship narrative because Ridan knew many things about gold smuggling through Kozhikode airport. Ridan had two phones - one containing crucial information related to gold smuggling. These phones were in Shaan's custody. However, the police instructed Shaan to claim that he threw the phones into the Chaliyar River. The police are yet to recover these two phones," Anvar added.
Anvar further alleged that a gold smuggling gang operates under Kumar. To substantiate his claims, Anvar released a voice clip sent to him by an anonymous person. In the clip, the person alleged that Kumar is anti-communist and has close ties with Congress leaders.
"Politicians K C Venugopal and K Surendran are close associates of Kumar. In the Saritha case, politicians including K C Venugopal were acquitted due to Kumar's influence. On K.C. Venugopal's instructions, Kumar convinced Saritha that no investigation related to her case would be capable of convicting anyone,” the anonymous person is heard saying in the audio clip.
“Kumar promised Saritha money if she slightly altered her previous statements against politicians. Because of this, Saritha told CBI officials that she couldn't remember many details related to the case. This slight change in her testimony allowed many politicians to return to the assembly and parliament," added the anonymous person.
The anonymous source also claimed that Kumar has a spy network in the Gulf region. Anyone arriving at Kozhikode airport with illegal gold is intercepted by a police team under former Malappuram police chief Sujith Das outside the airport. Kumar has a spy network in the Gulf region. Anyone purchasing gold from the wholesale market in that area is under surveillance by this spy team.
“With their help, gold worth several crores has been seized outside the airport. No other group can carry out gold smuggling through the airport as Kumar's group wants to do it. Kumar's close aide, Mujeeb, assists him in these activities," the anonymous person added.
On Sunday, Anvar accused the police team led by Kumar and Das of intercepting gold smugglers outside the airport to misappropriate a portion of the gold for their personal use.
The anonymous person further alleged that a group controlled by Kumar is tapping the phone calls of politicians and other individuals, including the Chief Minister. Speaking about the Vadakara parliamentary election, the person mentioned that the investigation into the Kafir screenshot remains incomplete due to the cyber cell team's stance.
Anvar announced his intention to meet with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday in Thiruvananthapuram. "I will submit a memorandum to the Chief Minister, requesting him to appoint a special investigation team of honest police officers to investigate these matters. A retired judge should oversee the investigation," he said.