The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alleged that Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan is trying to block the investigation in the gold smuggling case in a bid to hide his and his family’s involvement.
The party also alleged that many “unexplained” consignments were received at the CM’s official residence in Kerala.
During a media brief, Union minister Rajiv Chandra Shekhar said, “When gold smuggling scam was exposed in 2020, CM Kerela Pinarayi Vijayan had written to PM. But since then govt has blocked the investigation.”
“Recent revelations are explosive and unprecedented. This points a needle of suspicion to CM and his family,” he said.
Shekhar went on to add, “At the fulcrum of this conspiracy that involves currency smuggling and receiving of many unexplained consignments to his official residence is CM. Instead of trying to investigate, people offered money and threats to the woman who brought this to light.”
“Questions arise as to why is the CM quiet on the matter? Why was ADGP brokering settlement removed overnight? Doesn’t this confirm the involvement of the CM? Whose money was it that the ADGP was offering?” asked the BJP minister.
Suresh, a former employee of the UAE consulate, was taken into custody by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) along with another accused Sandeep Nair from Bengaluru on July 11, 2020.
The NIA, Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Customs conducted separate probes 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 chief minister, and another former employee of the UAE Consulate – Sarith – were arrested in connection with the case.
