Framing Of Space Scientist Nambi Narayanan In ISRO Espionage Case: CBI Files Charge Sheet Against Five Persons

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a charge sheet against five individuals in a Thiruvananthapuram court in connection with the alleged framing of space scientist Nambi Narayanan in the 1994 ISRO espionage case.

The identities of those charge-sheeted remain undisclosed.

On April 15, 2021, the Supreme Court had ordered that the report of a high-level committee on the role of erring police officials in the 1994 espionage case involving ISRO scientist Narayanan be given to the CBI, news agency PTI reported.

The controversy began in October 1994 when the Kerala police arrested Maldivian national Rasheeda in Thiruvananthapuram for allegedly acquiring secret drawings of ISRO rocket engines to sell to Pakistan.

The investigation soon expanded, leading to the arrest of Nambi Narayanan, then director of the cryogenic project at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), along with ISRO deputy director D Sasikumaran and Fousiya Hasan, a Maldivian friend of Rasheeda.

However, a subsequent CBI investigation concluded that the allegations were baseless.

In September 2018, the Supreme Court strongly criticised the actions of the police, describing their treatment of Narayanan as "psychopathological."

The apex court stated that Narayanan's "liberty and dignity," basic to his human rights, were jeopardised as he was taken into custody and, despite all the glory of the past, was eventually compelled to face "cynical abhorrence".

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