In a major embarrassment to Air India, the members of the internal complaints committee (ICC) of the then national carrier, which was commissioned in 2015, to look into a complaint of sexual harassment against one of its senior staff members, has now been named as accused in the case along with gold smuggling accused Swapna Suresh and others.
The charge sheet of the Crime Branch has been filed before a trial court here.
The first accused is Binoy Jacob, then top official of Air India SATS in Trivandrum, second accused is Swapna Suresh, then HR manager of Air India SATS.
Among those Air India officials who have been named as accused includes then ICC chairperson Uma Maheswari (retired- executive director), Satya Subramanian, Deputy General Manager (serving), RMS Rajan (Sr Asst GM- now retired) and ALeena Vineeth (Manager Trivandrum now serving).
Sreeja Sashidharan, who is an external member of the Air India ICC, is also an accused.
L.S.Sibu, a union leader and working in the Ground Services Department of Air India at the Trivandrum airport, had, in 2014, alleged financial irregularities at the airport and sought to bring them to the attention of the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Central Vigilance Commission and the Prime Minister.
Soon after this a written complaint surfaced against Sibu, where 17 female employees at Air India SATS here said he misbehaved with them.
This complaint was sent to the top officials of Air India, Chennai.
Based on this complaint, he was transferred to Hyderabad, effective April 2015.
Despite numerous pleas by Sibu, his wife and daughter that this was a false and fabricated case Air India, however, did not look into it and went through with the case.
Deputy SP of Police, Anil Kumar the investigating officer in the Crime Branch case, said that from their detailed probe it was found out this complaint was a forged one.
"Our probe revealed that the Air India ICC held a sitting at the office of the Air India SATS here in 2015. In that sitting the ICC recorded a statement in the name of Parvathy Sabu, but it was done by Neethu Mohan, an impersonated witness produced by the first and second accused. Neethu is the fifth accused in this case," said Kumar.
"In our further investigation, it was revealed that the ICC had taken statements from other witnesses, whose identity card and such details were verified and filed. But the ICC did not verify the details of 'Sabu'," said Kumar.
Though his posting is still at Hyderabad, with this charge sheet, Sibu and his family have heaved a sigh of relief.
Swapna Suresh was employed at the Air India SATS, but left the job in 2015, after the police began their first probe based on a complaint from Sibu.
The ensuing Crime Branch investigation unearthed evidence against Swapna Suresh of being a key accused in the fabricated sexual harassment case and after a detailed questioning last year, her arrest was recorded.
This took place when she was in jail in the gold smuggling case.
Swapna Suresh was arrested by the NIA from Bengaluru in July 2020 after her former colleague employed at the UAE Consulate here, P.S. Sarith, was arrested by the Customs on July 5, 2020 for allegedly smuggling gold in a diplomatic baggage destined for the Consulate.
At the time of her arrest, she was employed in a IT related firm attached to the office of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan at a five figure monthly salary.
Also arrested in the gold smuggling case was senior bureaucrat M. Sivasankar, who was Principal Secretary to Vijayan, who is now out on bail and has been reinstated.
Reacting to this charge sheet, Swapna told the media, "When I spoke out against the powerful and influential (Sivasankar) this has come.
"I do not want to go into this case as it's now before the judiciary. I will face it," she added.