Even two days after arresting Zakir Husain, the probe into the alleged abduction and threatening of a businessman has failed to make any major headway owing to the delay in arresting the rest of the accused in the case.
The police team, probing the case, is yet to arrest Sheela Thomas, a businesswoman who is the fourth accused. According to them, the arrest is delayed as she has moved the court seeking anticipatory bail.
“After the sessions court dismissed her plea for a pre-arrest bail, we had just 24 hours to locate her hideout and record her arrest. Now that she has approached the High Court, we have no option but to wait till a verdict is pronounced,” said S. Shihabuddin, Assistant Commissioner of Police, DCRB, Kochi, who leads the investigation.
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Meanwhile, the police denied reports of high-handedness of the political leadership against receiving Husain in custody for collection of evidence. “For now, there is no need to take him [Husain] for evidence collection as the incident had taken place a year ago. Further, the complaint against pertained to kidnapping and threatening and not assault,” the ACP said.
Interrogation
Official sources, however, stressed the need for interrogating Husain considering the fact that he had evaded arrest for 21 days.
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In his complaint, one Jube Poulose had alleged that Husain had threatened him. It said Husain had asked Poulose to withdraw from a business deal with one Sheela Thomas. Karukapilly Siddique, an ousted DYFI leader currently in judicial custody, is the second accused in the case.
According to the complainant, Siddique had also threatened Poulose, claiming it was a quotation from CPI(M) State secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan from Thiruvananthapruam.
On November 11, 2014, Poulose had entered into a business partnership with Sheela Thomas, who runs Acrah Organics Private Limited, for supplying dairy products from his farm. The venture was launched by availing a loan of Rs.35 lakh from IDBI Bank.
However, Thomas unilaterally withdrew from the deal after five months, the complainant alleged.