Kerala HC slams police over fake antique dealer case

Kochi, Oct 5 Hours after the Congress-led opposition took on Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the Kerala Assembly over the way the Kerala Police handled the case related to now arrested fake antique dealer Monson Mavunkal for the past two years, the Kerala High Court on Tuesday slammed the police for the way they have managed the case so far.

Hearing a petition filed by Ajith, the former driver of Mavunkal who's seeking police protection, Justice Devan Ramachandran slammed the way the police have handled the case and expressed doubts if the present probe will reach any conclusion as even the serving police officers are under cloud.

It is now known that the Kerala Police for a while provided security to the residence of Mavunkal in Cherthala, which is more like an antique museum, as well as in Kochi.

Ramachandran said the whole world is laughing after hearing the claims about his possessions.

Mavunkal (54) used to showcase to his high-profile guests the antiques in his collection, which he claimed included the 'staff of Moses' and "two of the 30 silver coins that were taken by Judas to cheat Jesus Christ".

The police said that he had showcased some "rare" items, including a throne said to be used by Tipu Sultan, a huge collection of old Qurans, Bibles (Old Testament and New Testament), and old handwritten copies of Bhagavad Gita.

Mavunkal used to bring several VIPs to his palatial residence, a part of which was converted into a museum to house his 'precious' antiques.

Last month, Mavunkal was arrested by the Crime Branch after six people accused him of cheating to the tune of over Rs 6 crore. He continues to be in the custody of the Crime Branch.

Ramachandran said it's really surprising that the police, who had seen his possessions, especially an elephant tusk, never even cared to find out the legality behind the possessions.

Incidentally, the tusk has now been found to be fake.

Ramachandran slammed the police and pointed out that Mavunkal appears to have got credibility due to the wrong acts of the police.

The court has now asked state police chief Anil Kant to submit a detailed report on the matter and posted the case for hearing on October 26.

With the court now intervening in a big way, Vijayan, who also holds the home portfolio, is going to be in a spot of bother as the presence of a Kerala lady, who is settled in Italy, and her links with Mavunkal are now being cited as the reason why recently-retired state police chief Loknath Behra, along with serving ADGP Manoj Abraham, visited the museum of Mavunkal.

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