HC declines to stay VACB probe

50 acres of farmland purchase by Jacob Thomas in Tamil Nadu

The Kerala High Court on Friday declined to stay further investigation into a corruption case registered by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) against Jacob Thomas, IPS, in connection with the purchase of 50 acres of farmland in Tamil Nadu in 2001.

The charge against Mr. Thomas was that he had not informed the government of this purchase as mandated under the relevant law. According to Rule 16 (2) of All India Services (Conduct) Rules, 1968, details of all immovable properties of officers, owned, acquired or leased by them, should be submitted to the government. He also wrote about the purchase of the land in his service book as well. But it did not find mention in his annual property statement.

When the petition came up for hearing, counsel for Mr. Thomas pleaded for staying further proceedings in the case.

Opposing the plea, Senior Public Prosecutor Suman Chakravarthy submitted that Mr. Thomas had not obtained the required government permission before buying the land. Countering an argument that the IPS officer had purchased the land for a Koch-based private company, of which he was a director, the prosecutor contended that if the land was purchased on behalf of the private company, he would have handed it over to the company by now. Besides, the title deed of the property carried the name of Mr. Thomas. Moreover, he had not revealed the sources of income for buying the land as well.

During the hearing on the stay petition, Justice V. Shircy orally observed that the document produced by the prosecution showed prima face that there were materials to proceed against the petitioner.

Mr. Thomas, now Managing Director of Mental Industries Ltd., Shoranur, in his petition said that the very same allegations were found false by the VACB in 2007. The case was now registered without conducting a preliminary inquiry into the allegations.