Kerala Gold Smuggling Case: Swapna Suresh Returns To Haunt Pinarayi Vijayan, Says Currency Baggage Sent To CM During 2016 Dubai Visit

In a sensational disclosure, Swapna Suresh, prime accused in the 2020 Thiruvananthapuram gold smuggling case, said today (Jun 7) that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan was directly involved in the scam.

Speaking to media, Swapna Suresh alleged that a baggage containing currency was sent to CM Vijayan when he was in Dubai during the year 2016.

In a statement recorded before a Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, Swapna Suresh also named Vijayan's former principal secretary M Sivasankar, CM's wife Kamala, daughter Veena, his additional private secretary C M Raveendran, former bureaucrat Nalini Netto and former minister K T Jaleel for their role in the gold smuggling racket.

“It all began way back in 2016 when the CM was on a trip to UAE. It was then that Sivasankar contacted me first since I was the secretary in the consulate. He told me the chief minister had forgotten to take one of his bags and it had to be taken to Dubai immediately. We sent the bag to the CM through a diplomat in the consulate. When it was brought to the consulate we found that there was currency in it. That's how it all started,” leading Malayalam daily Manorama quoted Swapna Suresh as saying

On Monday (Jun 6), Swapna Suresh had recorded her secret statement before a Judicial First Class Magistrate Court in Kochi. Swapna Suresh said there was a threat to her life and therefore, she was going to disclose all the facts related to the case before the court.

"Since I have to return again on Wednesday to complete my statement before the magistrate, I will come and in the afternoon will tell everything to the media. I feel a threat to my life," she had informed media persons yesterday.

Swapna Suresh was released from jail in November last year, 16 months after her arrest in the sensational gold smuggling case.

Swapna Suresh was taken into custody by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) along with another accused Sandeep Nair from Bengaluru on July 11, 2020.

She was a former employee of the UAE consulate here.

The NIA, Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Customs conducted separate investigations into the racket that was busted with the seizure of gold worth Rs 15 crore from the diplomatic baggage of the UAE Consulate at Thiruvananthapuram airport on July 5, 2020.

Several people, including M Sivasankar, the former Principal Secretary to the Kerala Chief Minister and another ex-employee of the UAE Consulate here, Sarith P S, were arrested in connection with the case.

(With inputs from PTI)