The Kerala High Court on Thursday suspended the four-year sentence awarded to former Director General of Police Tomin J Thachankary, who was convicted in a disproportionate assets case.

Justice A Badharudeen allowed Thachankary’s plea seeking suspension of his sentence, which he had filed along with his appeal. The court had reserved its verdict on the plea on September 24.

Last month, the court heard detailed arguments from Senior Advocate Raman B Pillai, appearing for Thachankary, and the public prosecutor, who opposed the plea for suspension of the sentence.

The court also expressed concern over delays in corruption trials and appeals, observing that convicts could obtain suspension of their sentences from appellate courts after lengthy trials, while their appeals remained pending for years. The judge further noted that some accused could die before their appeals were decided, potentially defeating the purpose of the Prevention of Corruption Act (PC Act).

Justice Badharudeen orally observed that the provisions of the PC Act should be strictly construed to ensure that corrupt officials do not go scot-free and undermine public confidence in the system.

“But what is actually happening? Once a person is found to be included in a PC Act offence, then also, after a while, when he is getting bail, he will be re-introduced into the service, he may continue the same process, and sometimes repeated offences. Sometimes, he may not,” the judge said, stressing the need for stricter enforcement of the Act’s provisions.

Earlier, Justice Badharudeen had granted the prosecution time to oppose Thachankary’s plea, with the state describing the case as exceptional given his former position as a senior police officer.

The prosecution argued that Thachankary’s senior position and the circumstances of the case warranted an opportunity to file a detailed written objection.

“This case cannot be treated as an ordinary case. He was a Director General of Police. His position, the seriousness of the allegations and the fact that this is a crime against society must be considered,” the state’s counsel said.

After hearing both sides, the court allowed the prosecution two days to file its objections, taking into account the circumstances of the case.

The Enquiry Commissioner and Special Judge (Vigilance), Kottayam, had convicted Thachankary under Section 13(2) read with Section 13(1)(e) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. He was sentenced to four years of rigorous imprisonment and fined ₹30.84 lakh.

The trial court found that even after giving Thachankary the benefit of discrepancies established through the evidence, 52% of his known income remained disproportionate to his assets.
(With LiveLaw inputs)