Gold Smuggling Case: Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan Suspends His Key Aide Sivasankar After Probe Confirms Close Links To Swapna Suresh

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has announced the suspension of IAS officer M Sivasankar, the former principal secretary to the CM and former IT secretary, from service pending inquiry.

In a damage control move viewed as an attempt to contain the political fallout of the explosive gold smuggling case through diplomatic channels, CM Pinarayi Vijayan last week ordered the removal of M Sivasankar from the post of his secretary after allegations emerged of his close links to Swapna Suresh, one of the main accused in the case.

Sivasankar has been accused of facilitating her appointment as operations manager at the Space Park under the Kerala State IT Infrastructure Ltd (KSITI), which is under the IT Department of the state government.

According to a report in Manorama, Sivasankar was confirmed as a frequent visitor to Swapna Suresh’s Thiruvananthapuram flat by the officer-bearers of the residents association of the apartment building.

Sivasankar, an influential bureaucrat who enjoys close proximity to CM Pinarayi Vijayan, was subsequently removed as the secretary of the Electronics and Information Technology department of the state that is directly controlled by CM.

Sivasankar’s suspension from IAS came on Thursday (Jul 16) after a high-level committee led by Chief Secretary Vishwas Mehta submitted a report to the Chief Minister recommending action against Sivasankar.

Pinarayi Vijayan had requested Vishwas Mehta and Additional Chief Secretary (Finance) Rajesh Kumar Singh to probe whether the office of state Chief Minister was compromised in any way to assist Swapna Suresh, a key figure in the gold smuggling case.

The probe fOUND Sivasankar had violated All India Service Rules and displayed lack of diligence while maintaining links with individuals outside the normal scope of conduct of his official business.

A team of customs officials ALSO grilled Sivasankar at his house in Thiruvananthapuram.