The police have filed a case against Ayana Joseph and Varsha Singh, who are suspected to be fake names used by the fraudsters.
Kerala: Justice Sasidharan Nambiar, a retired judge of the Kerala High Court, has fallen victim to a cyber fraud, losing Rs 90 lakhs of his savings. An FIR (First Information Report) has been filed at the Hill Palace Police Station in Ernakulam following a complaint from the former judge.
Justice Nambiar, who served as an additional judge of the Kerala High Court from 2004, was a judicial member of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) from October 9, 2013, until January 2, 2018. The FIR includes serious charges under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Information Technology (IT) Act. These charges include criminal breach of trust, cheating to induce delivery of property, and cheating by impersonation.
As per the FIR, Justice Nambiar was added to a WhatsApp group named “Aditya Birla Equity Learning Group.”
He was promised an extraordinary return of 850 percent on investments made in online share trading. The group offered enticing promises that lured him into making large financial transfers.
Between December 4 and December 24, 2024, Justice Nambiar transferred Rs 90 lakh using IMPS and RTGS payment methods. However, the promised returns did not materialize, and he received no profit or even the repayment of his principal amount. This led the retired judge to file a complaint with the police.
The police have recorded Justice Nambiar’s statement at his residence as part of their investigation. According to the FIR, two women have been named as the primary accused in the case. The fraud claims have raised concerns over the growing incidence of online scams and cyber frauds.
Justice Nambiar had a distinguished career in law and the judiciary. He enrolled as an advocate in November 1975 and joined the Kerala State Judicial Service as a Munsiff. In December 1985, he was promoted to the position of Sub Judge, and he served in various districts, including Ernakulam and Kottayam.
He later became a District and Sessions Judge in 1990 and worked in various judicial capacities, including as the MACT (Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal) judge in Manjeri and as an Enquiry Commissioner. Justice Nambiar was also appointed as the Additional District Judge in Trivandrum and Kottayam until 1999.
In June 1999, he served as an Additional Sessions Judge in Kottayam, and from June 2001 to April 2002, he worked as the District Judge in Trivandrum. Before his elevation to the Kerala High Court, Justice Nambiar served as the Registrar of the Kerala High Court from April 2002.
The FIR has been filed under multiple sections of the law, including:
- Section 316(2) – Criminal breach of trust
- Section 318(4) – Cheating to induce delivery of property
- Section 66D of the IT Act, 2008 – Cheating by personation (online fraud)
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