Former state DGP Tomin J Thachankary
Thachankary was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment and fined Rs 30.84 lakh by the vigilance special court, Kottayam, on Sept 17 in a disproportionate assets case.
The court further said it would issue a suo motu order for Thachankary to be examined by a medical board to ascertain whether he had suffered from any ailments during his detention or whether his admission to the hospital was part of a conspiracy. If there was a conspiracy, the matter would require investigation to identify those involved, including the jail doctor, jail superintendent or others in the police hierarchy, the court said. A bench of Justice A Badharudeen made the oral observation while considering Thachankary’s plea seeking permission to withdraw his previous application for relaxation of a bail condition restricting his foreign travel. The court reserved its order on the plea. It observed that the anomaly surrounding his admission to the jail hospital while serving a prison sentence would have to be addressed through a specific order. “It’s not a question from the court, but a question by an ordinary citizen of India. As a patient, can he tolerate the imbalance during the take-off of a flight? When he entered the jail, he was admitted to the hospital and was discharged only after he was granted bail. He was not sent to the cell. If the doctors gave him the privilege of admission to the jail hospital, an investigation has to be ordered,” the court orally observed. The HC subsequently suspended his sentence and granted him bail pending disposal of his appeal challenging the conviction and sentence. Thachankary later approached the HC seeking relaxation of a bail condition requiring him to obtain prior permission before travelling abroad to resume his job as an operations manager with a jewellery group in Sharjah. His request drew sharp criticism from the court. However, he has now filed a plea seeking to withdraw his application for relaxation of the bail condition.
Kochi : The high court orally observed on Thursday that an investigation was necessary to ascertain whether former DGP Tomin J Thachankary’s admission to the jail hospital, instead of a prison cell, while serving his sentence in a disproportionate assets case was part of a conspiracy. the court again questioned how Thachankary could travel abroad to resume his job after having been admitted to the jail hospital for serious ailments during his detention While considering the application on Thursday.