96 Witnesses, 271 Documents: Kerala’s First Conviction of a Former DGP for Corruption

The courtroom in Kottayam saw an unprecedented turn of events on September 18, 2026, when former Director General of Police Tomin J Thachankary was handed a four‑year rigorous imprisonment sentence. The judgment, delivered by Special Judge (Vigilance) K V Rajanish, also slapped a fine of ₹30,84,892 on the ex‑top cop, with an extra two‑month term if the payment is delayed.

What makes this case stand out isn’t just the punishment; it’s the sheer volume of evidence that built the prosecution’s narrative. Ninety‑six witnesses stepped forward, and the court examined 271 documentary exhibits – a mountain of material that left little room for doubt.

Thachankary’s legal troubles trace back to his early days as Assistant Superintendent of Police in Alappuzha, when a personal quarrel spiralled into accusations of misuse of power. The dispute escalated after his relative’s conflict with Boby Kuruvilla of Karuvelithara, prompting a series of legal battles that eventually reached the vigilance machinery.

The heart of the vigilance case, however, focused on Thachankary’s stint as Inspector General from January 2003 to July 2007. Investigators painted a stark picture: while his legitimate income tallied up to ₹47,64,913, his expenditures swelled to more than ₹1.02 crore – a surplus of about 135 %.

The court zeroed in on several financial threads that tied the excess wealth directly to the former DGP. Land purchases in Thammanam accounted for ₹31,04,000 across eighteen deeds, with stamp duty of ₹3,07,566. An apartment in Thiruvananthapuram, claimed to be bought by his father, turned out to be funded by Thachankary himself, as evidenced by a ₹1.75 lakh registration fee paid in his name. A hefty gift of ₹52.50 lakh was transferred to his wife, and overseas travel receipts showed a spend of ₹6.75 lakh during the period under scrutiny. Even tax payments of ₹1.85 lakh were factored into the audit.

After a vigilance FIR was lodged in 2007, the case took years to reach trial. The charge sheet, filed by then Vigilance SP P Radhakrishnan in 2013, bounced between the Thrissur, Muvattupuzha and finally Kottayam benches before landing before Adv K K Sreekanth, the public prosecutor, who steered the case to its historic conclusion.

When Thachankary appealed for leniency on medical grounds, the bench rebuffed him, emphasizing that a senior officer entrusted with public safety cannot expect compassion for abusing that very trust. The judgment, handed down after just nine months of trial, marks Kerala’s first successful corruption conviction of a former top‑ranked police officer.

Thachankary was escorted to Poojappura Central Jail in Thiruvananthapuram shortly after the verdict, ending a saga that began with a family feud and culminated in a landmark judicial pronouncement on accountability in the state’s law‑enforcement hierarchy.