Ex-cops get anticipatory bail in ISRO spying case

TRIVANDRUM: The Kerala High Court (HC) on Friday granted anticipatory bail to former police officers accused of framing an espionage case against Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) scientists.

They include Kerala police chief Sibi Mathews and whistleblower Gujarat intelligence chief RB Sreekumar who exposed the state government’s role in the 2022 riots.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arraigned them in the 1994 espionage case on the complaint of ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan.

The court directed them to appear before the Cbiinterrogatorsonjan.27between10amand11am.

If arrested, they shall be released on bail on executing bonds for Rs100,000 each with two solvent sureties.

They cannot leave India without the court’s permission.

Narayanan sought to prosecute the officers ater the Supreme Court upheld his innocence in 2018 and ordered compensation at the end of a 24-year-long fight.

The police arrested him and allegedly tortured him for two months in custody accusing him and two colleagues of espionage at the ISRO centre here.

A bench headed by chief justice Dipak Misra asked Kerala state to pay him a compensation of Rs5 million and constituted a commitee to look into police excesses.

The court held that the entire prosecution initiated by the state police was malicious and it had caused tremendous harassment and immeasurable anguish to him.

Disposing of their bail plea, the HC bench headed by Justice K Babu directed them to continue appearing before the interrogators on Mondays and Fridays for two weeks.

“They shall continue to report before the investigating officer for interrogation as and when required. Petitioners shall not influence the witnesses or tamper with the evidence,” the order says.

“They shall fully corporate with the investigation subjecting themselves to deemed custody as observed in Gurbachan Singh and Sushila Aggarwal cases for discovery or identification if any.”