A court in Thiruvananthapuram initiated proceedings against Kerala Transport Minister Antony Raju following an invitation from the High Court. However, the Supreme Court stepped in and halted further legal action in the case involving tampered underwear evidence.
A bench of Justices CT Ravikumar and PV Sanjay Kumar sent a notice to the State of Kerala in this regard. Raju is a member of the Janadhipathya Kerala Congress party, part of the Left Democratic Front coalition ruling Kerala.
The issue arose after an Australian man, Andrew Salvatore Cervelli, was arrested at Thiruvananthapuram airport 33 years ago for allegedly smuggling charas hidden in his underwear. Raju, then a young attorney, represented Cervelli during the trial, and he was initially convicted. However, later it was discovered that the underwear was too small for Cervelli, leading to his acquittal.
Based on information from the Australian National Central Bureau, the investigating officer sought an investigation into possible evidence tampering. In 1994, a criminal complaint was filed against Raju and a court clerk. Although the High Court annulled the proceedings on certain grounds, it did not prohibit prosecution under Section 195(1)(b) of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Raju filed a petition with the Supreme Court after a Thiruvananthapuram court recently initiated legal action against him. Meanwhile, the top court was also hearing a petition challenging the Kerala High Court ruling in the case. The Supreme Court did not comment on the lawyer’s role in the case but allowed the accused to raise complaints.
