ISRO espionage case: Division Bench of the Kerala High Court admits appeal filed by Siby Mathews challenging judgment of the Single Judge

A Division Bench of the High Court of Kerala comprising of Ag. Chief justice Ashok Bhushan and Justice A.M. Shaffique on Wednesday admitted an appeal filed by former ADGP Siby Mathews against a single judge’s order quashing a Government decision not to take any action against Siby Mathews and former police officers including the then Circle Inspector (Special Branch) S. Vijayan and the then Superintendent of Police K.K. Joshua who had initially investigated the ISO espionage case. After the Government Pleader took notice for the State government, the Bench adjourned the matter for hearing to January 12, 2015. 

 

Nambi Narayanan, who was falsely charged with committing espionage was ultimately acquitted by the Apex Court

  The learned Single Judge, while quashing the Government decision not to take any action against Siby Mathews and other police officers, who had conducted investigations into the ISRO espionage case, had also directed the State Government to reconsider its decision and issue appropriate orders.

The learned Single judge had passed the order quashing the said decision of the State Government in a writ petition filed by former ISRO scientist S. Nambi Narayanan. He alleged that despite the CBI submitting a report to the State Government indicting the investigating officials of committing grave lapses, the State Government had brushed the same under the carpet and refused to take any disciplinary action against the erring cops. 

As a senior official at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Mr. Nambi Narayanan was in-charge of the cryogenics division. In 1994, he was falsely charged with espionage and arrested. The charges against him were investigated by the CBI and found to be false in 1996, and the Supreme Court also declared him not guilty in 1998.