Cops summon Anto Augustine over forged marriage documents case; Messi visit fraud bail order deferred

Kochi: Reporter TV MD Anto Augustine has been summoned for questioning on Monday in a case registered over an alleged attempt to defame Chief Minister V D Satheesan using forged documents claiming that he had entered into a second marriage.

The Kalamassery police have directed Augustine to appear at 10 am on Monday. However, it remains unclear whether he has accepted the notice.

The case follows a complaint by KPCC spokesperson Raju P Nair, who alleged that a conspiracy was hatched to defame Satheesan for political gains and destabilise the government. The FIR invokes BNS sections relating to forgery, tampering with public records, criminal conspiracy, defamation and knowingly using forged documents.

Augustine is the first accused, while two identifiable persons have been booked as the second and third accused. The case was initially registered as a Zero FIR by the Thiruvananthapuram City Cyber Crime Police and later transferred to the Kalamassery police.

The controversy began with remarks Augustine made at a public programme in Pathanamthitta on September 10. Claiming that two persons had approached him with what he described as a 'crores-worth news', Augustine said they handed him copies of a marriage registration certificate and notice purportedly issued in Satheesan’s name.

He said the documents claimed Satheesan had married again on October 17, 2012, at the Byndoor Sub-Registrar’s Office in Karnataka, while his first marriage was still valid. Augustine said he did not publish the claim because he suspected the documents were not genuine, and that the documents remained in his possession.

The complainant, however, alleged that the documents were forged and that a larger conspiracy was behind their creation. The complaint seeks seizure of the documents and examination of CCTV footage at the Reporter TV office to identify the two persons who allegedly handed them over to Augustine.

Augustine has also approached the court seeking anticipatory bail in the case.

Meanwhile, the Ernakulam Principal Sessions Court has deferred its order on Augustine’s anticipatory bail plea in the alleged multi-crore fraud case linked to the proposed Kerala visit of Argentine football star Lionel Messi and the Argentina team. The order is now expected on Saturday.

The court had completed arguments on Thursday but deferred the order after the prosecution sought copies of defence documents. The SIT told the court it did not intend to arrest Augustine immediately but planned to summon him for questioning. The prosecution opposed the return of $6,300 seized from him, citing the need for forensic accounting.

Augustine was recently arrested in an Abkari case after Excise officials recovered 67 litres of illicit liquor from his Wayanad residence. The Kerala High Court later granted him bail.