The 'Spy' who refused to let the trail go cold: A timeline of ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan's battle for justice
A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra awarded Rs 50 lakh compensation to 76-year-old Narayanan for being subjected to mental cruelty in the case.
The Supreme Court Friday held that former ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan was "arrested unnecessarily, harassed and subjected to mental cruelty" in a 1994 espionage case and ordered a probe into the role of Kerala police officers.
A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra awarded Rs 50 lakh compensation to 76-year-old Narayanan for being subjected to mental cruelty in the case.
The bench, also comprising Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, formed a three-member panel headed by its former judge D K Jain to probe Narayanan being framed in the spy case.
Narayanan had approached the apex court against the judgement of the Kerala High Court, which said no action was required to be taken against the former DGP and two retired superintendents of police K K Joshua and S Vijayan, who were later held responsible by the CBI for the scientist's illegal arrest.
In 1998, the apex court granted compensation of Rs 1 lakh to Narayanan and others, who were discharged in the case, and directed the state government to pay the amount.He later approached the NHRC claiming compensation from the state government for the mental agony and torture suffered by him. The NHRC, after hearing both sides and taking into account the apex court judgement of April 29, 1998, awarded him interim compensation of Rs 10 lakh in March 2001.
ISRO False Spy Case: A timeline of S Nambi Narayan’s battle for justice against Kerala police
Timeline
| WHEN | WHAT |
| October 20, 1994 | The Kerala Police arrest Mariam Rasheeda, a Maldives native in Thiruvananthapuram for overstaying in India and obtaining drawings of ISRO rocket engines |
| November 15, 1994 | A Special Investigation Team led by former DGP Siby Mathews take over the case |
| November 30, 1994 | The police arrest scientist Nambi Narayanan, director of cryogenic project for 'selling secrets to Pakistan’. Also arrested D Sasikumaran, deputy director, K Chandrasekar, Indian representative of Russian space agency, SK Sharma, labour contractor and Fauziyya Hassan, a Maldvian friend of Mariam Rashida |
| December 1994 | Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) takes over the probe |
| January 1995 | Court grants bail to ISRO scientists, businessmen but the Maldivian nationals continue to be in jail |
| April 1996 | CBI does not find evidence to back the charges of the Intelligence Bureau and Kerala Police. Submits final report to the chief judicial magistrate |
| May 1996 | The court accepts CBI’s report, acquits all accused in the spy case. The new CPM government orders further investigation |
| April 29, 1998 | Supreme Court (SC) directs Kerala government to pay cost of Rs 1 lakh to Narayanan |
| May 1998 | SC quashes the Kerala government move to launch another investigation |
| 1999 | Narayanan files a suit for compensation |
| March 14, 2001 | The NHRC, after hearing both sides and taking into account the apex court judgment of April 29, 1998, awarded him an interim compensation of Rs. 10 lakh |
| September 2012 | Kerala High Court directs the state government to pay Rs 10 lakh to Narayanan |
| 2015 | Narayanan approaches the SC seeking criminal and disciplinary action against Kerala police officials led by Siby Mathew |
| April 2017 | SC begins hearing Narayanan's plea to initiate criminal proceedings against police officers, including Siby Mathews, who allegedly fabricated the case against him |
| May 2018 | Bench headed by CJI Dipak Mista says Narayanan has to be given compensation |
| September 14, 2018 | 3-judge SC bench holds that Narayanan was unnecessarily arrested, harassed and subjected to mental cruelty in ISRO spy case, orders Rs 50 lakh compensation |
| Compiled by DNA Research N Archives | |