If he is arrested, court said he should be released on bail on furnishing a bond of ₹50,000 with two sureties of like amount.
KPCC president K Sudhakaran. (ksudhakaraninc/Facebook)
There was some relief for Kerala state Congress chief K Sudhakaran on Wednesday, 21 June, as the Kerala High Court granted him interim anticipatory bail in a cheating case involving controversial antique dealer Monson Mavunkal.
The court, however, directed Sudhakaran to appear before the Crime Branch of the state police, which is probing his role in the cheating case, on 23 June.
Justice Justice Ziyad Rahman AA said that if Sudhakaran was arrested, he shall be released on bail on furnishing a bond of ₹50,000 with two sureties of the like amount.
“This order shall be in force for two weeks,” the court added.
It also directed the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president to cooperate with the investigation and not to attempt to intimidate or influence witnesses in the case.
Sudhakaran and Mavunkal with their friends. (Supplied)
The order came on the anticipatory bail plea filed by Sudhakaran who was recently asked to appear before the Crime Branch, which is probing the case.
In his anticipatory bail plea, the senior leader stated that he apprehended arrest as he could not turn up before the investigating agency on 14 June, the initial date given for his appearance.
The KPCC chief said in his plea that he had “prearranged meetings and consultations” on that day and as a result he had submitted a request for another date for his appearance.
Sudhakaran, in the plea filed through advocate Mathew A Kuzhalnadan, an MLA himself, has contended that the case in question was registered in September 2021 and there were no allegations or accusations against him in the FIR.
“It is pertinent to state that after more than 19 months of registering the crime, the personal appearance of the petitioner (Sudhakaran) is sought based on a suspicion that the petitioner is allegedly involved in the crime,” he has said in his petition.
In his plea, the Congress MP claimed that prima facie the notice issued to him to be present in person before the Crime Branch “appears to have been for extraneous reasons and political compulsion best known to the police authorities”.
The allegations and claims made in the plea were refuted by the state on Wednesday during the brief hearing of the matter.
The Director General of Prosecution, representing the state, told the court that the investigation was being carried out fairly and impartially.
He contended that despite “clinching evidence” against the KPCC chief, Sudhakaran has not yet been arrested and only a notice under Section 41A of the Criminal Procedure Code was issued seeking his appearance.
The senior official urged the court to direct Sudhakaran to cooperate with the investigation in the case.
During the hearing, Sudhakaran’s lawyer told the court that his client would appear before the Crime Branch on 23 June and cooperate with the investigation.
The Crime Branch had decided to interrogate the KPCC president based on a statement by complainants, who lost their money in the cheating case, claiming they had handed over cash to Mavunkal in the presence of Sudhakaran.
Earlier, the agency had submitted an additional report before the court, arraigning Sudhakaran as an accused in the case.
When the allegations cropped up against him two years ago, Sudhakaran denied them.
The issue had snowballed into a political controversy as images of Mavunkal, along with Sudhakaran, emerged. Sudhakaran had said he had gone to Mavunkal’s residence for treatment, as the latter claimed to be a trained cosmetologist.
Mavunkal had allegedly made false representations about himself and his business to various people and collected money from them. Many images of Mavunkal with senior police officers and bureaucrats of the state have surfaced.
Incidentally, on 17 June, a POCSO court in Kochi sentenced Mavunkal to imprisonment till the end of his natural life after finding him guilty in a case of rape of a minor brought by the Crime Branch .
The court said the convict did not deserve any leniency.
Cherthala native Mavunkal, who claims to be in possession of rare and historic antiques, was arrested by the Crime Branch in September 2021.
Conman Monson Mavunkal. (Supplied)
Complainants in the case — Kozhikode natives Yakub Purayil, Siddique Purayil, Anoop V Ahmmed, Salim Edathil, AT Shameer and Shanimon — alleged that Mavunkal convinced them that the Union government had withheld the ₹2.62 lakh crore he raised by selling antiques to members of a royal family in the UAE.
Mavunkal, they alleged, took ₹10 crore from them on the pretext of “eliminating the hindrances” in withdrawing his money from the bank.
Though he demanded ₹25 lakh more, they rejected his demand, the complainants said.
They further alleged that Sudhakaran, who was present with Mavunkal, assured them that he (Sudhakaran) would clear the hurdles in withdrawing the money by exerting his power as a member of the Permanent Committee on Finance of Parliament.
Based on his assurance, the complainants reportedly gave Mavunkal the additional ₹25 lakh. They also alleged that Sudhakaran took ₹10 lakh from the total amount.
The complainants told the Crime Branch they were convinced that Mavunkal lied to them about the ₹2.62 lakh crore caught in a legal tangle. Based on their assertion, the Crime Branch registered the case.
Earlier, the CPI(M) state secretary MV Govindan quoted the party’s Malayalam mouthpiece Deshabhimani to accuse Sudhakaran of being present at the house of conman Monson Mavunkal while the self-styled controversial antique dealer was raping a minor.
Within hours, the Crime Branch of the Kerala Police issued a statement denying the claim that Sudhakaran was present while Mavunkal was raping the girl — the daughter of an office staff of the conman.
Crime Branch sources contacted by the South First confirmed that Deshabhimani had not consulted it before carrying the allegation against Sudhakaran, and the front-page news item held no truth.
(With PTI inputs)
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