Kochi, Nov 9 After being questioned for close to eight hours by Customs officials, Kerala Higher Education Minister K.T. Jaleel was let off on Monday. Soon after being released, Jaleel took to Facebook to say that he has done no wrong.
"Those who are trying to tie me up in knots will see either the rope break or the hands of those who try to do it get tired. I say this not out of arrogance or as a challenge, but because I know I have done no wrong," wrote Jaleel.
Jaleel arrived at the Customs office at around 12 noon. He walked out after almost eight hours, waving to the media as he drove away in his car.
"Since the Customs broke the news of me being called for recording a statement, I decided to make it an official one. Since the NIA and the ED took the confidential route, I also went before them in a confidential manner.
"I will make it clear once more, even if a thousand agencies probe for over 10,000 years, none will be able to find out any wrong, as I have done nothing and am a simple public person," Jaleel wrote.
Jaleel in the past has been questioned for several hours by the National Investigation Agency and the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the gold smuggling case and alleged distribution of the holy Quran received through the diplomatic route, allegedly on his directions.
The Customs unearthed the gold smuggling case when P.S. Sarith, a former employee of the UAE Consulate in Thiruvananthapuram, was arrested on July 5 for allegedly facilitating the smuggling of 30 kg gold in diplomatic baggage to the state capital from Dubai.
The name of Swapna Suresh, a former employee of the Consulate and later employed with the IT Department, too surfaced in the case.
Later, her links with the now-suspended and arrested IAS officer M. Sivasankar, then posted as Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and also the IT Secretary, also came to light. The call records of Jaleel and Swapna Suresh had revealed that they were in touch in the past.
Earlier, the minister had admitted that a consignment containing the holy Quran had been received from the UAE Consulate in Thiruvananthapuram, which a top Customs official had referred to as "prima facie violation of Foreign Contribution Regulation Act".
Officials had said that Jaleel was under the scanner after he allegedly claimed that the consignments brought to Thiruvananthapuram during Ramzan month contained holy Quran for distribution in his constituency.
The opposition Congress and the BJP have been demanding Jaleel's resignation, but he has got the full support of Vijayan who has strongly defended him.
Though Jaleel continues to be supremely confident, the probe agencies are yet to give him a clean chit and the grapevine is that he might be called again.
( With inputs from IANS )
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