'I will fight until I die': 36-year legal battle by Alappuzha man led to Thachankary’s conviction

Kottayam: It began with a minor argument between two friends in 1990. It escalated into alleged police harassment, raids and a legal battle that lasted 36 years. On Thursday, that long fight culminated in the conviction of former DGP Tomin J Thachankary in a disproportionate assets case.

For Bobby Kuruvilla and his family, the case against Thachankary has never been just about the disproportionate assets he was found to have accumulated between 2003 and 2007. They say it began with the alleged misuse of police power when Thachankary was serving as an ASP in Alappuzha.

“Thirty-six years of legal battle led to this victory. The fight was intensified when police power was misused to gain undue benefits and crucify innocent people,” Bobby and his co-complainant Alexander Karuvelithara said.

“The first case against me and my family was registered on September 13, 1990. Today, 36 years and four days have passed. I have pursued this case all these years. Many people, including Thachankary, persuaded me to withdraw from this case. But I stood firm,” Bobby said.

Trouble began over a minor disagreement when Bobby lightly pushed his friend. The friend initially approached Ramankary police station with a complaint, but police refused to register a case, saying there was no merit in it. The friend then approached his relative, Thachankary.

“Thachankary called us and spoke in an authoritarian tone. He said, ‘There is a case against you; you must come here.’ My father refused to go, and that infuriated him. Everything started from there,” Bobby said.

According to Bobby, Thachankary subsequently submitted a complaint on his official letterhead alleging that Bobby, his father and his brother had attempted to attack him. He alleged that the complaint was later changed to claim that the family had gone to his house and threatened to kill him at gunpoint.

The family then faced a series of police raids, Bobby said. He alleged that police teams raided his home and the houses of relatives as part of efforts to trace the family.

“Thachankary didn’t even spare my pregnant sister. He went to the hospital with female police officers and said things like, ‘I am a proclaimed offender, and the sister of a proclaimed offender should not be treated here. We managed only because our aunt worked there,’” Bobby alleged.

The family subsequently complained to then DIG R P G Nair about the alleged harassment by members of a police team known as the Shivaji Squad. Bobby said the squad was later disbanded following complaints of alleged torture.

“We went into hiding because we were afraid of the police. The raids and harassment continued,” he said.

From harassment allegations to the Vigilance case
“What Tomin Thachankary did to us can never be forgotten,” Bobby said.

He said his father approached the then DGP with a complaint and that former Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan was among those who supported the family. He also recalled an intervention by K R Gouri when Thachankary allegedly summoned them.

“She asked Thachankary, ‘Who are you to ask? If someone doesn’t come to you when you call, will you push them around?’” Bobby said.

Years later, when Thachankary was serving as Transport Commissioner, Bobby said he received information about some shady deals. He handed the material to the then Vigilance Director but was dissatisfied with the response.

“I was told to leave after they reviewed everything. The next day, I approached the court and raised the complaint,” he said.

The matter came before Justice Kemal Pasha, who asked the Vigilance about the action taken on Bobby’s complaint. The Vigilance informed the court that action was being taken.

That process eventually led to the disproportionate assets investigation that resulted in Thursday’s conviction.

“The present conviction relates only to the accumulation of disproportionate assets during the four-year check period and does not cover the allegations after 2007. This should be probed too. I will fight against Thachankary until I die.”

“Thachankary was a very influential officer. Many people told us to withdraw the case, saying nothing would happen. But I stood firm. I had faith in the law. I approached the court as a last resort,” Bobby said.

The Kottayam Vigilance Court on Thursday sentenced Thachankary to four years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹30.84 lakh in the disproportionate assets case.

The case relates to the period from January 1, 2003, to July 7, 2007. According to the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau, Thachankary had accumulated assets worth about ₹64 lakh in excess of his known sources of income. The investigation found that his assets were 135% higher than his known income, and the prosecution alleged that he could not satisfactorily explain the additional assets. The Vigilance investigation began after Thachankary was promoted to DIG.