A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team from New Delhi has commenced its inquiry into the ‘police frame-up’ that set in motion the infamous ‘ISRO spy case’ in 1994.
The CBI team called on former ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan at his residence.
Last month, the CBI filed an FIR marked as classified in the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) court here accusing five former law enforcers of "wrongful arrest, custodial torture and unjustified incarceration" of Mr. Narayanan and others.
The CBI had named former Director General of Police Siby Mathews, who headed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) that probed the ISRO scandal; his deputies K.K. Joshua, S. Vijayan and Thampi S. Durgadutt; and then Deputy Director, Intelligence Bureau, R.B. Sreekumar, accused in the FIR.
Recently, a district court here had granted anticipatory bail to Mr. Mathews in the case. The dark chapter in the annals of the police investigation in Kerala has its provenance in a case registered at Vanchiyoor police station on November 13, 1994.
Based on a ‘dubious’ special branch report, the police had booked two Maldivian women for overstay and violation of the provisions of the Official Secrets Act.
The charging officers accused the women of attempting to entrap ISRO scientists involved in the cryogenic engine procurement project. In addition, they alleged the women had spirited out high-end space secrets out of India for a foreign power.
The CBI, later, dismissed the case as baseless. However, the Supreme Court upheld the closure report and ordered the agency to prosecute the former law enforcers for malicious prosecution.
