Gold smuggling case: ED to approach HC against judicial commission

KOCHI: ED (Enforcement Directorate) officials will approach the High Court against the government's appointment of a Judicial Commission to probe the revelation of the accused that the central agencies were involved in a conspiracy to arraign persons including the chief minister in the gold smuggling case. ED officials in Kochi said that permission would be obtained from Delhi soon.

The government has issued a notification on May 7 appointing former High Court judge Justice VK Mohanan as its commissioner and the commission, which started functioning on June 11, had issued a press release last day. The commission will continue to collect evidence until June 26.

The voice clip of the accused Swapna Suresh in which she says that the ED officials forced her to name the Chief Minister in the gold smuggling case through the diplomatic channel another accused Sandeep Nair's letter to the court pointing out that the ED officials had forced him to name the Chief Minister in the gold smuggling case paved the way for the judicial inquiry.

According to the government notification, the commission has been directed to conduct an objective examination and submit a report on the diversion of investigations conducted by various central agencies since July 2020.

As such, the ED says that the entire investigation into the gold smuggling case will come under the purview of the Judicial Commission and that will adversely affect the investigation of the case.