A local court in Kochi, Kerala, approved the sending of suspended IAS officer M Sivashankar in five-day customs department custody in a gold smuggling case.
Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (Economic Offenses) of Ernakulam granted the five-day custody of Shivshankar to the Customs (Prevention) Commissionerate.
Simultaneously, the court also sent two other accused, Swapna Suresh and PS Sarit, to five days of customary custody. They are all accused of smuggling gold through the UAE consulate.