'Swapna Suresh is my relative,' admits Kerala liquor baron & millionaire Biju Ramesh

Prime accused in the gold smuggling case Swapna Suresh is my distant relative, said Biju Ramesh, a millionaire-businessman and a prominent liquor baron in Kerala. "I know her. She is my distant relative. To be specific, She is my father's cousin's granddaughter," said Biju Ramesh to Republic TV.

He was responding to the query made by Republic TV after our investigation found out that Biju Ramesh had called Swapna Suresh 5 times on April 20, between 11.28 AM and 2.40 PM.

"She had called me to inform me about her father's death. Due to Corona, I couldn't go," said Biju,  a whistleblower in the Kerala bar scam which had caused big hiccups to the UDF 2016 assembly elections campaign.

However, Biju didn't give any clear answers on the nature of the 5 calls made by him on April 20.

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Recently, he had raised allegations that Kerala Congress (M)’s Jose K Mani, which had left UDF to join the ruling LDF, had offered him Rs 10 crore to withdraw his comments on party chairman K M Mani’s role in the scam. This revelation had put the LDF in a sticky wicket, during the time it was admitting the Jose K Mani faction to the coalition.

'Will reveal details to investigation officers'

In the same breath, he had attacked the UDF saying during the Oomen Chandy's led UDF government, the bar owners had given Rs 20 crore to then health minister V S Sivakumar, KPCC president Chennithala, to reduce the bar licence fees.

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When asked specifically of the calls made, Ramesh reserved his response. "I won't reveal it to the media. I will reveal details to the investigation officers if at all they inquire my connections with her," said the popular businessman in the state who owns several 5-star hotels and a premier engineering college as well as multiple real estate investments. He is also an office-bearer of the Kerala Bar Hotel Association. His daughter is married to the son of Congress MP from Attingal.

Known for his outspoken nature and someone who claims to be a crusader against corruption, it remains to be seen whether Biju will take the lid off the Kerala gold smuggling scam and Swapna Suresh in the future.

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