6
Sunday
July 2025
4:43 AM IST
News Headlines
Home   | Main News   | Kerala  | National   | International  | Business   | Sports   | Entertainment   | Columns   | Offbeat   | Health   | About Deepika 
Main News
Gold smuggling:suspended IAS officer Sivasankar quizzed by NIA for over 10 hours
 
Kochi: The National Investigation Agency probing the sensational gold smuggling case in Kerala questioned suspended senior IAS officer M Sivasankar for over 10 hours on Tuesday before he was allowed to leave its office late in the evening. The former principal secretary to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan appeared before the probe agency at its office at around 10 am and left the place at 8.30 pm after the marathon questioning carried out for the second consecutive day. Sivasankar, who was asked to stay back at Kochi after the questioning on Monday, was allowed to go back to his hometown Thiruvananthapuram. Sivasankar''s lawyer said his understanding is that the top bureaucrat has left for Thiruvananthapuram after today''s quizzing.

The lawyer, however, said the investigation agency probing the case can summon any person it wanted to investigate. Investigation is only in the initial stage , his lawyer said and added that the bureaucrat will continue to co-operate with the NIA probe. This is the third time in the past one week that NIA grilled the officer, removed as Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the state IT Secretary after allegations of his link with a key woman accused in the case surfaced. Sivasankar, who was questioned for nearly nine hours on Monday, was directed by the NIA to appear before the team again this morning. Earlier on July 23, Sivasankar was questioned for five hours by the NIA team at the Peroorkada police club in Thiruvananthapuram.

The Customs department had also questioned him earlier. Action was taken against Sivasankar after allegations surfaced that he had links with Swapna Suresh, the key accusedin the case related to the attempt to smuggle gold through diplomatic baggage using the name of a person in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) consulate in Thiruvananthapuram. The Customs seized the gold, weighing over 30 kg and valued at around Rs 15 crore on July 5. The NIA, which has been entrusted with the probe into the case, has booked Suresh and three others -- Sarith, Sandeep Nair and Faizal Fareed-- under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Suresh and Sarith were former employees of the UAE consulate and allegedly used their past connection to smuggle gold using the diplomatic channel.


EC asks Kharge to clarify on Sonia's "Karnataka sovereignty" remark
SC refuses to entertain plea challenging caste-based census in Bihar
Congress takes dig at Modi over unemployment
Rajiv Gandhi assassination: Centre moves SC seeking review of its order on per-mature release of six convicts
Centre misuses offices of Governors: Sitaram Yechury
CM Mamata Banerjee apologises for Bengal minister's remarks on President Murmu
England "Stokes" fury in Pakistan camp as they claim second T20 WC title
16 Indian sailors detained in Equatorial Guinea: Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan seeks PM Modi's intervention
Guru Nanak's teachings beacon of light to the world: PM
India pound Zimbabwe, book semifinal clash with England
Rahul and Rain win it for India
Punjab records 1,842 farm fires; BJP, Congress slam AAP govt over rising stubble burning incidents
Kharge to join Rahul in Bharat Jodo Yatra in Hyderabad on Tuesday
91 dead after suspension bridge collapses in Gujarat's Morbi
New IT rules to put greater obligations on social media platforms to act against unlawful content, misinformation: Rajeev Chandrasekhar
Twitter confirms Musk's acquisition of social media company
Kohli's legendary knock stuns Pak in their 2022 T20 WC opener
Terrorism is biggest violation of human rights: Amit Shah
Kharge elected as Congress president
If threats are global, response can't be local: PM
KERALA NEWS
Top police official held in gang rape case
 Kozhikode: Police on Sunday arrested a Circle Inspector (station house officer) attached in Beypore  
Rain likely to occur many places in Kerala
Two killed as car plunged into well
Kerala CM greet Oommen Chandy on his 79th birthday
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
64 arrested in London on Charles III coronation day
 London: At least 64 people were arrested in UK's capital during the coronation of Charles III on May
Bangladesh police arrest six persons for selling fraud US visa stamps
Erdogan announces extension of grain deal by 120 days
Musk hints at new chief for Twitter
NATIONAL NEWS
Quo Vadis, Manipur?
 Imphal - Hardly any state in India has undergone in the last decade the chaos, lawlessness and suffe
27-year-old Hyderabad woman among victims of Texas mall shooting
One held in Swati Maliwal case: Delhi Police
PM to deliver opening address at 'No Money for Terror' event
Untitled Page
Rashtra Deepika LTD
Copyright @ 2021 , Rashtra Deepika Ltd.