Thiruvananthapuram: The ban announced by the state government has been extended till November 15 in five districts. The district collectors have ordered an extension till November 15 in various districts with the aim of preventing the spread of Covid. The state-wide district ban was announced on October 3. The government ordered the ban to last until 12 noon on October 31.

The ban was announced by the district collectors of Thrissur, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Ernakulam, and Malappuram. The Thiruvananthapuram District Collector has said that a decision will be taken tomorrow on whether to extend the ban. This was followed by an order from various district collectors extending the ban till November 15.

Existing restrictions will continue in the districts where the ban is being extended. No more than five people should gather in public places. Only 20 people are allowed to attend wedding and death ceremonies in the Containment Zone. In other districts, the proposal is 50 for weddings and 20 for posthumous ceremonies. There is no change in the exams including PSC. There is no obstruction to public transport. Government offices, public sector undertakings, banks, and hotels will all operate in accordance with the Covid protocol.

Bangalore: Bineesh Kodiyeri, who was arrested in a drug case, has been remanded in custody for four days by a court. The City Civil Court granted the ED’s request for four days’ custody. It is learned that Bineesh will be taken from the court to the ED’s zonal office for detailed questioning.

Bineesh’s arrest was recorded after he was called to his Bangalore office today and questioned for three and a half hours in connection with the case. He was later produced in court.

Thiruvananthapuram: Following the arrest of M.Shivshankar, there was a widespread protest by youth organizations demanding the resignation of the Chief Minister. Youth Congress held in March against Cliff House demanding resignation of the Chief Minister.

Opposition parties protested against the government in connection with a gold smuggling case. Mahila Morcha activists entered the Secretariat premises. Activists protested in front of the North Block, where the CM’s office is located.

Kochi: Former Principal Secretary of the Chief Minister M Shivasankar has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a gold smuggling case. Shivasankar, who was taken into custody from Thiruvananthapuram within minutes of the High Court rejecting his anticipatory bail application in the morning, was brought to Kochi in the afternoon. The arrest was recorded around 10 pm after seven hours of questioning. The High Court had earlier rejected the bail plea saying that Shivashankar could be arrested following due process. It is learned that the Enforcement Directorate has been directed to arrest Shivashankar, who has already been interrogated for more than 100 hours at various stages.

Shivashankar was taken into custody at 10.55 am after a high court order was issued and he was summoned to a hospital in Thiruvananthapuram. The notice was handed over after discussing the health condition of the doctor treating Shivashankar at the Ayurveda hospital. Earlier, hospital sources said that Shivashankar was still suffering from back pain and needed to be treated for a few more days. However, he was informed that he would be taken to Kochi later.

The officers handed over the summons to Shivashankar and asked him if he was coming in his own vehicle or with us. He agreed to come along. He left for Kochi with the officers very calmly. The ED office and its surroundings became the venue for the protest of the opposition youth organizations when they came to know that Shivashankar was being brought to Kochi.

Shivshankar will be remanded in custody for 115 days following his suspension. On July 11, customs raided a flat rented by Shivshankar to Swapna. On July 14, Customs questioned Shivashankar for nine hours. He was suspended from service on 16 July. He was first questioned by the National Investigation Agency on July 23. He was questioned by the NIA on July 27 for two consecutive days. Shivshankar was first questioned by the Enforcement Directorate on August 15. On September 24, the NIA questioned him again. Shivshankar was questioned by customs on October 9 and 10.

Thiruvananthapuram: A special court has remanded Rabins K Hameed, one of the main accused in the Thiruvananthapuram gold smuggling case, in NIA custody for seven days. Rabins Hameed told the court that he had planned the gold smuggling using social media and had invested in the gold smuggling. Gold has already been smuggled. The NIA also told the court that digital devices had been seized. Rabins was subsequently remanded in NIA custody for five days.

Rabins K Hameed is the 10th accused in the NIA-registered UAPA case in gold smuggling. Rabins was produced before a special NIA court at 4 pm after being subjected to preliminary questioning at the NIA’s Kochi headquarters. Rabins was arrested by Dubai police in July, the NIA told the court.

Meanwhile, KT Ramis, a UAE businessman named Dawood Al Arabi, was behind the gold smuggling. Customs launched an investigation into Ramis’ statement. The investigation team suspects that the gold was smuggled by a Malayalee businessman under the false name of Dawood Al Arabi. According to Ramis, Dawood was involved in smuggling gold to India 12 times.