Antony Raju sentenced to three years in jail for evidence tampering in 1990 drug case

A court in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday (January 3) found former Kerala transport minister Antony Raju guilty of tampering with evidence in a drug seizure case registered in 1990, sentencing him to three years of imprisonment, a verdict that could also lead to his disqualification as an MLA.

Raju currently serves as the only MLA for the Janadhipathya Kerala Congress, an ally in the state's ruling Left Democratic Alliance (LDF), in the Kerala Assembly where he represents the Thiruvananthapuram constituency.

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The court found Raju guilty under Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence), 193 (fabricating false evidence), 409 (criminal breach of trust), and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code.

Appeal alters case course

The case against Raju dates back more than 35 years, to a time when he was a young lawyer and had not yet entered active politics. An Australian man, Andrew Salvatore Cervelli, had been arrested at the Thiruvananthapuram airport for allegedly smuggling 61.5 grams of charas by concealing it in his underwear. Raju represented Cervelli first before the trial court, which eventually convicted and sentenced him to 10 years' imprisonment.

The case, however, took an unusual turn when it reached the High Court following an appeal filed by Cervelli. At this stage, the underwear in which the drugs were allegedly concealed was found to be far too small to fit Cervelli, a finding that ultimately led to his acquittal, as per a Bar and Bench report.

A few years later, after Cervelli returned to Australia, the investigating officer in the smuggling case approached the Kerala High Court seeking a probe into whether any evidence tampering had taken place. This plea was filed on the basis of certain information received from the Australian National Central Bureau.

Legal twists revive trial

Subsequently, a criminal complaint was registered in 1994 against Raju and court clerk KJ Jose. After a gap of 12 years, in 2006, the Assistant Commissioner of Police filed a chargesheet before the magistrate court. The prosecution said investigation revealed that Raju along with KJ Jose had conspired to tamper with the material evidence, the underwear seized in the case, while it was in the custody of the magistrate’s court.

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In March last year, the High Court quashed the trial court proceedings on a technical ground. Importantly, it clarified that its order would not prevent the prosecution from being pursued in accordance with the provisions of Section 195(1)(b) of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

The High Court went a step further by directing its Registry to initiate proceedings, a move that paved the way for the trial court in Thiruvananthapuram to revive criminal proceedings against Raju.

Raju then approached the Supreme Court seeking relief after the Thiruvananthapuram court initiated proceedings against him. However, in November 2024, the Supreme Court dismissed his petition and formally restored the criminal proceedings.

The trial court subsequently resumed the case, culminating in Raju’s conviction on Saturday.