Panel Submits Report on Nambi Narayanan’s Illegal Arrest To SC. Kerala Govt in Trouble?
A high-level probe panel appointed by the Supreme Court to take erring cops to task for causing “tremendous harassment” and “immeasurable anguish” to ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan in the 1994 espionage case has submitted its report to the apex court, sources said.
The SC had on September 14, 2018 appointed the three-member panel headed by its former judge D.K. Jain while directing the Kerala government to cough up Rs 50 lakh as compensation for compelling Narayanan to undergo “immense humiliation”.
The scientist was arrested when the Congress was heading the government in Kerala. The panel, after completing its investigation, submitted its report in a sealed cover to the apex court recently.
The CBI, in its probe, had held that the then top police officials in Kerala were responsible for Narayanan’s illegal arrest.
The case also had its political fallout, with a section in the Congress targeting the then chief minister, late K. Karunakaran over the issue, leading to his resignation eventually.
Over a period of almost two-and-a-half years, the panel headed by Justice Jain examined the circumstances leading to Narayanan’s arrest. The findings of the report are not yet known.
The espionage case, which made headlines in 1994, pertained to allegations of transfer of certain confidential documents on India’s space programme to foreign countries by two scientists and four others, including two Maldivian women.
The 79-year-old former scientist, who was given a clean chit by the CBI, maintained that the Kerala Police had “fabricated” the case and the technology he was accused to have stolen and sold in the 1994 case did not even exist at that time.
Ahead of Rocketry - The Nambi Effect's release in summer this year, here’s what you need to know about scientist Nambi Narayanan, the man who is the inspiration behind the film. The trailer of R Madhavan’s much-anticipated film Rocketry - The Nambi Effect released on Thursday, April 1. The film is based on ex-ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan and Madhavan will be seen playing the protagonist in the film.
WHO IS NAMBI NARAYANAN?
Nambi Narayanan is an Indian scientist and aerospace engineer hailing from the state of Tamil Nadu. Nambi was the head of Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Cryogenics Division when he was implicated in a fake spying case. In November 1994, Nambi Narayanan was charged with leaking confidential information pertaining to India’s space development to foreign agents. Nambi was accused of selling confidential "flight test data" for millions to foreign agents.
Nambi Narayanan was arrested and was interrogated by the Intelligence Bureau (IB). He claimed that he was forced to make false accusations against top ISRO officials. Nambi had also claimed that he was subjected to inhumane torture when he refused to comply with their demands and confess to the crime which never happened.
In 1996, the Central Bureau of Investigation dismissed the charges against Nambi Narayanan due to the lack of genuine information. In 1998, Supreme Court also dismissed the charges against Nambi. By then, the damage was already done to the scientist’s ambitious career. After the dismissal of the charges against him, Nambi Narayanan was transferred to Thiruvananthapuram. He retired from his service in 2001.
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