The Malappuram police have registered a case against former MLA P V Anvar on charges of illegal phone tapping, following a complaint by Kollam-based businessman and planter Murugesh Narendran.

The action comes after the Kerala High Court, on June 26, directed the State Police Chief to act on Narendran’s complaint within a month. Narendran alleged that Anvar had unlawfully tapped his phone. Acting on the court order, Narendran appeared before the Malappuram police station on Monday and recorded a detailed statement. A case was subsequently registered. The charges include Sections 66, 66B, and 43A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, and Section 42(2)(b) of the Telecommunication Act, 2023.

In a press conference held at the Malappuram Guest House on September 1, 2024, Anvar had openly admitted to tapping the phones of several individuals, including senior police officers. He also claimed to have spent large sums to gather evidence. Narendran, citing this admission, claimed Anvar had likely tapped his phone as well and demanded a detailed investigation. He approached the High Court after police failed to act on his initial complaint.

Earlier, the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Malappuram, submitted a report stating that the alleged offence was non-cognisable and that the complainant had not provided sufficient evidence, grounds on which a case was not registered.

Justice P V Kunhikrishnan, however, slammed this reasoning, stating that Anvar appeared to be operating like a parallel police force. The court observed that unauthorised phone tapping amounts to a serious violation of the fundamental right to privacy and warrants legal action. It also reminded that the responsibility of collecting evidence lies with the investigating officer, not the complainant.

The court further underlined that the law applies equally to all citizens, including MLAs, and criticised the police for attempting to shield Anvar from legal scrutiny.