Gold Smuggling: SC Notice to Shift Trial From Kerala to Karnataka
ED seeks trial transfer to Karnataka, cites accused's links with Kerala govt officials;
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday issued notices to four accused in the high-profile Kerala gold smuggling case, acting on a plea filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking the transfer of the trial from Kerala to Karnataka.
A bench comprising Justices M.M. Sundresh and Rajesh Bindal sought responses from the accused — Sarith P.S., Swapna Prabha Suresh, Sandeep Nair, and M. Sivasankar — within six weeks and scheduled the matter for hearing in July, after the court’s summer recess.
The move comes after Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju argued that a fair and impartial trial cannot be ensured in Kerala due to alleged links between the accused and high-ranking officials in the state government. He added that more accused individuals would be added as parties to the ED’s petition.
The ED's plea, originally filed in 2022, contends that the existing environment in Kerala poses serious challenges to conducting a free and fair trial, citing an alleged nexus between the accused and senior government functionaries.
The case made headlines after gold worth Rs 15 crore was seized on July 5, 2020, from a diplomatic baggage consignment addressed to the UAE Consulate at Thiruvananthapuram airport. Swapna Suresh, a former employee of the UAE Consulate, and co-accused Sandeep Nair were arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) from Bengaluru days later.
Investigations into the smuggling operation were carried out separately by the NIA, ED, and the Customs Department. Several individuals, including M. Sivasankar, the former principal secretary to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, and Sarith P.S., also formerly with the UAE Consulate, were arrested in connection with the case.
The Supreme Court had earlier asked the Centre to clarify whether diplomatic baggage is subject to scanning under Indian law or enjoys immunity from such searches. The court is continuing to assess various aspects of the case as it considers the ED’s plea for trial relocation.
