The Kottayam Vigilance Court has sentenced retired IPS officer and former Director General of Police Tomin J. Thachankary to four years’ rigorous imprisonment and fined him Rs 30,84,892 for earning and possessing disproportionate assets. The court made it clear that Thachankary does not deserve any relaxation in the duration of imprisonment simply because of the top position he held in the police department. He will be housed in the Central Jail, Tiruvananthapuram.
Earlier, the court had found that Tomin J. Thachankary was a trouble-maker. He was charged with earning and possessing Rs 68 lakhs worth of assets between 2003 and 2007. The hearing was over on September 16. The inquiry was started as a result of a complaint lodged by Boby Kuruvila, alleging that Thachankary possessed houses, apartments and properties and that their cost exceeded his income during his service period.
The Vigilance enquiry found that the expenses for the above holdings were not substantiated by his income.
It was found that, during the period of investigation, the investigation team found an increase of 135.80% in the disproportionate assets.
The Vigilance report says that Thachankary had caused a massive loss to the exchequer by evading stamp duty during the property purchases.
The charge sheet was submitted before the Thrissur Vigilance Court in 2013. Later, the case was shifted to the Kottayam court.
Earlier, the High Court and Supreme Court had rejected Thachankary’s plea for further investigation. The hearing culminated before the Kottayam Vigilance Court.
Thachankary argued that the assets were bequeathed to him by his parents.
As Thachankary was promoted to the position of Deputy Inspector General (DIG) in 2007, the case was investigated by a team headed by a DySP (Deputy Superintendent of Police). When the charge sheet was issued, he had been promoted as the Director General of Police.
The last position Tomin J. Thachankary held before his retirement from the Indian Police Service (IPS) on July 31, 2023, was the Director General of Police (DGP) for Investigation at the Kerala State Human Rights Commission.
He had also had a stint as the ADGP-in-charge of jails in the state. He belonged to the 1984 batch of Civil Service.
The Home Department’s former Joint Secretary was examined as a witness. The former Additional Chief Secretary, former Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Income Tax officers and Thachankary’s sister were also examined as witnesses.
During the regime of CPM Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan, Thachankary had been suspended for travelling abroad without the necessary permission.
Thachankary is the third IPS officer in the state to face jail terms. Earlier, former Inspector General of Police K. Lakshmana IPS (Retd.) was jailed in connection with the fake encounter death of Naxalite leader Varghese. K.G. Premshankar IPS was jailed for custodial torture of media persons. Thachankary is the first one booked on corruption charges.
