Court rulings in cases with inter-State ramifications are likely to become a stumbling block in attempts to initiate a joint probe by the Kerala and Tamil Nadu police in the alleged Nirmal chit fund scam.
A. Hemachandran, Director General of Police (Crimes), pointed out that while the legal authority in the case investigation lay with the Tamil Nadu police, the role of the Kerala police was restricted to that of a facilitator to provide all support.
He cited the instance of a joint probe that had been conducted by the Tamil Nadu and Puducherry police forces into a major case of financial fraud in Tamil Nadu.
Setback
The law enforcers faced a setback when the court criticised the mode of investigation and quashed some of the findings.
Nevertheless, the Kerala police have constituted a team exclusively to assist the Tamil Nadu police in their probe into the alleged scam. Anti-piracy Cell Superintendent of Police B. Prasanth Kani has been entrusted with leading the team of around 20 officers, including those from various wings such as the Economic Offences wing and the local police.
“We have shared the details of the team with the Tamil Nadu police. The team has begun to collect details as part of the probe,” Mr. Hemachandran said.
On the other hand, the depositors of the financial firm are critical of the “slow pace” of the ongoing probe. Gopalakrishnan, president of the action council, said they were dissatisfied with the efforts of the State government. “We are left in a quandary since many of us reside less than 1 km from the inter-State border and face uncertainty over whom to rely on for our needs. The frustration among the residents towards the stance of the authorities is palpable,” he said. He alleged that there was lack of coordination between the police forces of both States and that the action council had been tasked on multiple occasions with making arrangements for the visits that are being made by the Tamil Nadu police.
Police officers maintained that it would be impractical to act in accordance with the demands of the people on emotive issues. “It would defeat the purpose of our efforts. Any action made by neglecting legal precedence could lead to possible benefits for the accused to go scot-free at a later stage,” an official said.
