False allegations in ISRO spy case against Nambi Narayanan part of international conspiracy: CBI in Kerala HC

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The Central Intelligence Bureau (CBI) recently said the espionage charges against aerospace scientist Nambi Narayanan, which caused a stir in 1994, are false and part of a larger “international conspiracy”.

According to a Times of India report, the CBI said in a Kerala High Court hearing that the arrest of Nambi Narayanan in the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) spy case in 1994 was false because the charges against him were fabricated.

The CBI has announced that it will publish a case log which proves that the arrest of Nambi Narayanan in the 1994 ISRO spy case was part of an international conspiracy. Prior to his arrest, Narayanan was a well-known liquid propellant engine scientist at ISRO, India’s space agency. He was falsely accused and then arrested.

The Kerala High Court is currently hearing an application for early bail for those under investigation for their alleged involvement in the prosecution of Nambi Narayanan in the ISRO spy case in 1994. CBI opposes granting bail to accused persons.

How Nambi Narayanan was framed in the ISRO spy case

In 1994, ISRO scientist S Nambi Narayanan was arrested by Kerala Police along with some of his comrades including D Sasikumaran, K Chandrashekhar and some others accused of selling classified information about the program of cryogenic engines from India to Russian and Pakistani ISI. The Kerala Police had launched the case based on information received from the Intelligence Bureau (IB). However, when the case was quickly passed to the CBI, the CBI discovered that the case had been fabricated and the defendants were falsely accused by the Kerala Police. The CBI investigation revealed that there had been no cases in the month following their arrest. However, the case lingered due to his involvement in Kerala politics.

The role played by IB had been questioned, as the so-called espionage evidence came from the agency, on the basis of which the police had acted.

The CBI eventually advised the Chief Judicial Magistrate in May 1996 that the spy case was bogus and there was no supporting evidence. The report was approved by the court and all defendants were cleared. However, the newly elected CPI(M)-led government chose to play by its own rules and ordered further inquiries until in May 1998 the Supreme Court quashed Kerala’s request for a further inquiry.

Since then, the Kerala government has protected corrupt cops and delayed the payment of compensation ordered by the High Court and the National Human Rights Commission. In order to bring criminal charges against the police officers who allegedly tampered with evidence against him, Narayanan filed a petition in April 2017. RB Sreekumar, recently arrested with Teesta Setalvad on June 25, 2022 for his perjury testimony in the Gujarat, was one such policeman.

Based on Narayanan’s petition, the Supreme Court appointed a three-member committee to look into the matter. After the DK Jain committee report highlighted a plot by Kerala Police and others to entrap the scientist, the Supreme Court ordered CBI to investigate the case last year. As a result, CBI conducted a thorough investigation and filed an FIR against several police officials based on the committee’s report.

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