Swapna Suresh has filed an application for anticipatory bail in the High Court of Kerala. In her anticipatory bail she said that she was innocent and had not committed any criminal offences.
She further mentioned that she has no connection or involvement in the smuggling of the gold. She was suspected to have smuggled gold from a diplomatic cargo addressed to the UAE. The case pertains to the seizure of 30 Kilogram of smuggled gold. Swapna Suresh was suspected in the case which relates to the gold smuggling through the thiruvananthapuram International Airport.
She said that:
she had resigned from her post as executive secretary in the consulate General officer of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and joined as a contract staff in the price water house coopers limited which deals with the space park project under the state IT department. However she said that she was still working with the Consulate as a secretary on “request basic” in view of the covid -19 situation.
She alleged in the bail petition that Rashid Khmis Al Sheimelli, who is the present acting charge of the Consultant General of UAE has adviced her to check with the customs officials regarding the delay of his consignment which arrived in the cargo on June 30 and July 1. The consulate general had instructed her to contact the custom officers, cargo complex thiruvananthapuram.
She called the assistant commissioner of customs and verified the status of the cargo. As per the request of the Assistant commissioner of customs, Air cargo consul general in charge went to the cargo complex, and admitted before the customs authority that the cargo belonged to him. The cargo was opened on July 5 in the presence of the senior officials from the High commissioner of Delhi along with the consul general and found 30 kg of gold hidden in the cargo.
The Home Ministry said that:
“the organized smuggling operation may have serious implications for National Security. The investigation was further transferred into the case to the NIA.
The decision comes a day after chief Ministry Pinarayi Vijayan wrote to Prime Ministry Narendra Modi demanding a thorough investigation by all central agencies. On Tuesday, M Sivasankar was removed as the principal secretary to the Kerala Chief Minister, after the senior IAS official was found in the close network of an alleged key player of the smuggling racket. Swapna Suresh had earlier worked under as executive secretary at the UAE consulate- general’s office.
In the bail petition she claimed that she had no connection or involvement in the smuggling of the gold. She had only contacted the Assistant Commissioner of customs over phone as per instruct the consulate general as part of her official work. She further said that she has been falsely implicated in the case. She feared that there was every possibility of her being implicated in the case. She pleaded that the Assistant commissioner of custom be directed to release her on bail against her arrest.
