ON JULY 12, Kerala saw a car chase that would put Formula 1 races to shame. It started at 11.30am at the Walayar border in Palakkad and ended at 1pm in Aluva, Ernakulam. The route was the NH544; the distance covered was 138km. The participants were three police vehicles and a bevy of media cars.
Inside one of the police vehicles were Swapna Suresh and Sandeep Nair, the second and fourth accused in the gold-smuggling case that shook the state earlier this month. The NIA had nabbed the duo from Bengaluru the previous night; they were about to escape to the northeast. The chase ended in Kochi after they underwent Covid-19 tests in Aluva. Both were presented before the NIA court and were remanded to 14 days custody.
The duo has been booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and had been, according to the NIA, using the diplomatic channel to smuggle gold for the past one year. The luggage that was nabbed at the Thiruvananthapuram international airport on July 4 was addressed to Rashed Khamis Ali Musaiqri Alshemeili, charge d’affaires at the UAE consulate in Kerala. The 30kg gold was “camouflaged” amid eatables. According to the customs department, Suresh had been using her contacts as a former UAE consulate official to run the smuggling network with Sarith Kumar, a former public relations officer at the UAE consulate. It is still unclear who paid for the gold and for whom it had been sent.
Bu hikaye THE WEEK dergisinin July 26, 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye THE WEEK dergisinin July 26, 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
There Is A Wind Blowing Against The BJP, And It Will Only Pick Up Speed
Interview - Akhilesh Yadav, Former Chief Minister, Uttar Pradesh
Between hospital and home
Transitional care centres can add a lot to India's health care system
EFFORT VS EFFECT
The government's attempts to ensure quality drugs is evident, but how well new policies can be monitored on the ground remains to be seen
A way to let go of fear
Accepting the use of adult diapers is a journey with various stages-denial, concealment, rejection and reluctance
Mandeeps & a miracle
Two strangers, one deadly disease and an act of kindness. How Mandeep Mann saved Mandeep Singh, an acute leukaemia patient, by donating his stem cells
The A, B, C of cosmetic surgery
Between eight to 10 lakh cosmetic surgeries happen in India every year. Who is an ideal candidate, and what are the risks and results you can expect?
Vaccines and meningitis
In sub-Saharan Africa, from Senegal in the west to Ethiopia in the east, and encompassing the northern part of Nigeria, there exists a region known as the African Meningitis Belt (AMB).
Celebrating diversity and inclusivity
As Indians battle it out in our nation's 18th general election, it is again time for voters to reflect on the \"Idea of India\"-or rather, on two duelling ideas of India that are now before us and between which the nation must choose at the ballot box.
Defendant: an Hermès handbag
When Hermès was hit with a class-action lawsuit last month for \"antitrust\" activities, it didn't see it coming. Most of the luxury world has all eyes on this suit, filed by two interested consumers who claim they were denied a purchase, and whether it would go to trial.
A legacy, bound
Amal Allana's biography of her father, Ebrahim Alkazi, is as much personal as it is historical
