Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is kingpin of gold smuggling case, says BJP Kerala chief

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], October 29 (ANI): Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is the kingpin of the gold smuggling case and he had introduced his former principal secretary M Sivasankar to key accused Swapna Suresh, BJP state president K Surendran said on Thursday.
"Sivasankar acted like a Chief Minister in CMO. The principal secretary is equal to the Chief Minister. All powers were behind him. He directed all these things. The Chief Minister himself introduced Sivasankar to Swapna Suresh, the main culprit of the case. Pinarayi Vijayan is the kingpin of the gold smuggling case," Surendran told ANI here.
He said that M Sivashankar, former principal secretary of the Kerala Chief Minister's Office, has admitted that he had called and directed the Customs officials to release the bag, containing smuggled gold, that was recovered on July 5.
"So it is crystal clear now the Chief Minister's Office and personally the Chief Minister was involved in this gold smuggling case. So, we demand that the Chief Minister should resign from his post moral grounds," Surendran said.
"We are intensifying our agitation. Today morning itself, we have started our agitation throughout the state. On the first day of November, there will be protests on national highways and state highways. From today onwards, we are continuously fighting against gold smuggling case and Chief minister's involvement demanding his resignation," he added.
Sivasankar was earlier today sent to seven-day custody of the Enforcement Directorate by a principal sessions court here in connection with the Kerala gold smuggling case.
The case, which is currently being probed by the Enforcement Directorate, the National Investigation Agency and the Customs Department, pertains to the smuggling of gold in the state through diplomatic channels.
The matter had come to light after 30 kg gold worth Rs 14.82 crore, smuggled in a diplomatic cargo, was busted by the Customs in Thiruvananthapuram on July 5. (ANI)