Retired DGP Thachankary Moves Kerala HC for Permission to Travel to UAE for Job

Retired Director General of Police Tommin Thachankary has approached the Kerala High Court seeking permission to travel to the United Arab Emirates to resume his employment with a jewellery group in Sharjah after his sentence in a disproportionate assets case was suspended.

Justice A Badharudheen considered the petition on Saturday and decided to hear the prosecution before passing an order. The matter has been posted for November 2.

Thachankary was sentenced to four years of imprisonment by a Vigilance Court in Kottayam last month for amassing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.

He was subsequently released from jail after the High Court suspended his sentence, subject to the condition that he should not leave the country without its permission.

In his petition, the retired police officer said he was employed as an operations manager with a jewellery group in Sharjah and needed to return to work. He also stated that he was a partner in Pulla Reddy Information Technology Consultants, a Dubai-based firm.

Thachankary submitted that he had been unable to attend his workplace for more than a month and risked losing his job if he failed to rejoin soon. Such a development, he said, would seriously affect his livelihood.

He has sought modification of the condition imposed by the High Court while suspending his sentence. Specifically, he requested permission to remain in the UAE from October 26 to December 31, 2026, and again from January 2 to March 31, 2027. He also furnished details of his proposed travel and stay in the Gulf nation.

The petitioner claimed that he had complied with all conditions imposed by the court while granting him bail. He further pointed out that during the trial before the Kottayam Vigilance Court, he had been permitted to travel between India and the UAE.

Thachankary also maintained that he had regularly appeared before the trial court and would not abscond if allowed to travel abroad. The High Court will consider the prosecution's response before deciding whether to relax the travel restriction.