FPJ Legal: Former Kerala DGP moves HC against lower court's bail order in ISRO espionage case

FPJ Legal: Former Kerala DGP moves HC against lower court's bail order in ISRO espionage case

FPJ Web DeskUpdated: Friday, September 24, 2021, 05:00 PM IST
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Kochi: The former Director General of Police (DGP) Siby Mathews on Friday filed a plea in the Kerala High Court against the order of the Thiruvananthapuram sessions court imposing a time limit on the anticipatory bail granted to him in connection with the conspiracy to frame former ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan and others in 1994 espionage case.

In the petition accessed by ANI, Siby Mathews alleged that the time limit imposed on him is a violation of the law settled by the Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court.

"The Supreme Court had held that an order granting bail should not be limited to a fixed period and the life of an order of anticipatory bail may continue till the end of the trial. The petitioner is fully cooperating with the investigation by the CBI New Delhi unit," said the petition.

The bail plea

It was relevant to note that the allegations relate to incidents that had occurred in 1994. "Therefore, the custodial interrogation of the petitioner may not be necessary to probe the matter," said the plea.

Mathews is the fourth accused in the case. Other accused in the case are--S Vijayan (former Circle Inspector of police), Thampi S Durgadutt (former Sub Inspector), and VR Rajeevan (former police commissioner).

Earlier in June, the sessions court granted the anticipatory bail to Mathews for 60 days.

In July, the CBI told the Supreme Court that it has registered an FIR against former Kerala Police Chief, Mathew and others for their alleged involvement and criminal conspiracy to frame former Indian Space Research Organisation scientist, Nambi Narayanan in an espionage case in 1994.

The espionage case

On April 15, the top court had ordered a CBI to probe the role of Kerala police officers in framing of Narayanan in a 1994 espionage case. The court had accepted the report submitted by panel headed by former top court judge D K Jain. The top court said the matter is very serious and it requires CBI probe.

The Central Bureau of Investigation in July had told the Supreme Court that it has registered a case against various Kerala officials in the 1994 espionage case against former Isro scientist Dr S Nambi Narayanan. The CBI filed the FIR based on the findings of the Justice DK Jain Committe. The agency filed a status report, after the top court ordered a CBI probe in April to investigate the role played by police in framing Narayanan.

Former Kerala DGP Siby Mathews was in August granted anticipatory bail by a Kerala court in the case registered by the CBI in connection with the illegal arrest of former ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan and two Maldives nationals in a 1994 spying case. The ISRO spy case was reopened after the apex court directed the CBI to look into it.

Recently Kerala High Court had granted an anticipatory bail plea to three former police officers and a retired Intelligence Bureau (IB) official in the same case.

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