Prime suspect in the Kerala gold smuggling case, Swapna Suresh, denied any role in the crime and claimed that she was being framed.
In an audio clip aired by TV channels in Kerala on Thursday, Swapna, a former employee associated with the state IT department, said she was being framed in the case for political gains and threatened to commit suicide if her character assassination continued through media.
She said she had contacted a Customs officer to ask about the delay in clearing a diplomatic baggage at the behest of a diplomat in the UAE consulate to whom the consignment was addressed to. "I have no role in the smuggling of gold through diplomatic baggage. A day after the baggage arrived, a diplomat in the consulate called me and inquired about the delay in its clearance. I then called Customs AC Ramamurthy and asked him about the delay. He told me that he would take up the matter," Swapna is heard saying in the audio.
Onmanorama could not independently verify the authenticity of the audio clip.
She said even when she was an employee at the consulate, she was not involved in matters relating to cargo movement or finance. "I used to work as the secretary to the consular. I have never spoken to anyone for my personal needs. I am no more an employee there. Still, I have helped them in their works until the last Sunday. One might wonder why I got involved in the matters of the consulate when I was a contract staff of Space Park. That is because my love for the UAE where I was born and brought up," she said.
Swapna said she had spoken to the chief minister, ministers and other leaders only in her personal capacity. She clarified that she had not gone to the houses of the chief minister or any other minister.
She also rubbished the allegations that she used to party with some important people. "There are no such incidents. There is no need to deviate from the issue. What is important is to find out who was behind the gold smuggling," she said.
Swapna said she has gone into hiding not because she had any role in the crime, but because she was afraid of those who are behind it.
Swapna's audio clip was released even as she has moved the Kerala High Court seeking anticipatory bail. However, in her bail application she has stated that she continued to do part-time work for the UAE consulate while being employed with Kerala's IT department.
(The article first appeared in Onmanorama)
