ISRO espionage case: Two Maldivian women oppose bail plea of former Kerala DGP

Two Maldivian women, who were arrested and later acquitted in the ISRO espionage case opposed the bail plea of former Kerala DGP Sibi Mathews.

This comes after ISRO scientist Nambi Narayan opposed the bail plea Mathews' petition.

Maldivian women Mariyam Rasheeda and Fousiya Hassan on Wednesday sought permission from the Thiruvananthapuram Principal Sessions Court to join as a party to the hearing of the anticipatory bail plea filed by former Kerala police officers Siby Mathews and KK Joshua, who were named by the CBIas accused in the ISRO conspiracy case.

Opposing the bail plea of the police officers, Rasheeda and Hassan said that they were framed in the case and tortured. They also pointed out that they had to spend three years in jail. Mariyam, in her petition, alleged that she was framed in the case after she resisted a sexual advance of a police officer, who is also one of the accused in the CBI case.

The next hearing of the bail plea will be held on Monday. The hearing was postponed as the bail petitions of the first two accused are in the consideration of the High Court.

Meanwhile, Sibi Mathews, who headed the special investigation team of Kerala police that probed the 1994 ISRO spy case and is the fourth accused in the CBI case in his bail plea said that Intelligence Bureau (IB) officials pressured senior state police officials to arrest ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan.

"IB officials were pressurising the Special Investigation Team and the Senior Police officers of State of Kerala in the joint conferences to arrest, stating that the matter is one related to the security of the nation and positions of such persons shall not be a hindrance for stern actions against them," he said in the bail plea.

Further denying any custodial torture of Nambi Narayanan, he argued in bail plea, "Nambi Narayanan was arrested on 30/11/1994 by S Jogesh, Inspector of Police and a member in the Special Investigation Team. His arrest was properly recorded in compliance with all legal formalities. There was no allegation of any custodial torture ever made by Nambi Narayanan before the court when he was repeatedly produced before the honourable Court."

The CBI had filed an FIR accusing 18 persons including former police officials of hatching a conspiracy.

The police officials named include the then head of Special Investigation Team (SIT) that probed the ISRO scandal Siby Mathews those in team A Vijayan, Thampi. S. Durgadutt, then City Police Commissioner V R Rajeevan, and then Deputy Director, Intelligence Bureau, RB Sreekumar.

The Supreme Court in April had ordered the CBI to look into the Justice DK Jain Committee report on senior Kerala police officials who allegedly framed Narayanan in the ISRO espionage case.

( With inputs from ANI )

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