Dollar smuggling: Customs Department to probe Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan's former secretary M Sivasankar

Sivasankar was earlier probed for his nexus with the gold smuggling accused, especially the UAE consulate's former employee Swapna Suresh

As part of the investigation into the Kerala gold smuggling case, the Customs Department is learnt to have registered a fresh case pertaining to the smuggling of dollars.

Sources said that Kerala Chief Minister's former principal secretary M Sivasankar was likely to be in the dock in the case as the Customs strongly suspected his involvement in the dollar transaction.

Sivasankar is facing probe for his nexus with the gold smuggling accused, especially the UAE consulate's former employee Swapna Suresh, as well as the alleged irregularities in importing around 17,000 kilogram of dates by the UAE consulate for the stated purpose of distribution among children's institutions in Kerala.

Meanwhile, Sivasankar, who was admitted to a private hospital on Friday as he complained of discomfort after Customs summoned him for quizzing, was on Saturday shifted to a government medical college hospital in Thiruvananthapuram. A medical bulletin from the private hospital said that he did not have any serious coronary ailments but was found to have disc ailments.

Tension prevailed at the private hospital premises after a person, said to be an employee at the hospital, manhandled some journalists while Sivsankar was being shifted from the hospital. Incidentally, Sivsankar's wife, who is a doctor, used to work at the same hospital.

Even as Customs sources said that a fresh case for dollar smuggling was initiated, it was not yet known whether Sivasankar was arraigned in the case. A bank official said to the Customs that he was compelled by Sivasankar to convert a big amount of Indian rupees to US dollars. This amount, 1.9 lakh US dollars, was suspected to be handed over to an official of UAE consulate in Kerala from where it was smuggled it to the UAE. It was also being probed if Swapna smuggled US dollars to the UAE while travelling with Sivasankar.

Sources close to Sivasankar said that the present moves of Customs against Sivasankar could be also due to political pressure as Sivasankar's arrest would cause further embarrassment to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan as Sivasankar has been his close confidant over the last four years.

Sivasankar had already moved the Kerala High Court seeking anticipatory bail in connection with Enforcement Directorate's probe against him and the court restrained the ED from arresting him till October 23. Sivasankar is likely to file for an anticipatory bail plea in connection with the Customs cases as well.