Kerala: Rs 1.5 lakh relief for vigilance raid victim

Kochi: The Police Complaints Authority  has  come to the aid of the wife of an assistant engineer (civil) in whose house at Thaliparamba  the Vigilance had conducted a raid based on a corruption case  in 2014.  It has asked the state to give Rs 1.50 lakh as compensation to assistant engineer K. Mohanan's wife who had found after the raid that her ‘karimanimala’ (a chain) was missing from the search list. She had filed a complaint before the Police Complaints Authority. "Inexcusable lapses on the part of the  officers headed by the VACB while conducting the search in the  petitioner’s house constitute a grave misconduct resulting in material loss  to the petitioner, besides causing physical and mental agony for which the state government should pay to the petitioner a sum of Rs 1,25,000 (Rs 1 lakh being the value of karimanimala and Rs 25,000  towards physical and mental agony suffered by  the petitioner) besides a sum of Rs 25,000  as cost of the present  proceedings within three months from the date of receipt of a copy this  order,”  the authority  said.

"I would say that the suspicious disappearance of  karimanimala is nothing but a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an  enigma, a vanishing trick perfectly planned and neatly executed. Officers  of the search party themselves causing disappearance of a valuable item  seized with the consumate skill of a pickpocket leaves much to be  desired and goes against the moral precept “though shall not steal,”  said Justice Narayana Kurup who is heading the State Police Complaints Authority. The petitioner, Srimathi Sairabhai of Thaliparamba,  made scathing allegations against the respondent---a honest and capable officer---as if he alone is responsible for the loss of karimanimala which I am not prepared to accept in the absence of evidence to support the same. It is easy to make allegations, but difficult to prove. All the same, the respondent cannot escape from liability as the head of the team conducting the search as admitted by him, the authority  observed.

A search was conducted at the Thaliparamba residence by the then DYSP, Vigilance on January 1,  2014 accompanied by a band of 18 officers and men  which commenced  about 6.45 a.m. and was over by 3.45 p.m.   During the search,  gold ornaments weighing 178.500 gm were  seized from the accused besides a sum of Rs 36, 490 as cash. The complaint highlighted by the petitioner before this authority in the present petition is that a karimanimala valued at Rs 1,00,000  and a rolled gold chain worth Rs 200,   though seized by the search party and handed over to the officers on the ground floor,  were not included in the search list nor the said articles were returned to her along with the other seized articles which were duly returned as per the receipt.