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Interpol rubbishes police claim
about British national

Interpol has rubbished the Kulu police chief's claim that it was holding classified information about British national Ian Stillman who was arrested near Manali in Himachal Pradesh and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for involvement in the drugs trade.

Interpol's decision to publicly comment on the case follows allegations by Superintendent of Police S Venu Gopal that 50-year-old Stillman had links with the international drugs mafia and a dossier on his activities, including a 'very serious offence' committed in London, had been put together by Interpol.

"What I can confirm is that Interpol (London) was notified of the arrest of Ian Stillman in August 2000 on drugs related matters," a spokeswoman for the organisation told rediff.com.

But she added, "Interpol has never communicated to the Indian authorities on the said individual. We can confirm that there is no one under the name of Ian Stillman sought in the United Kingdom for criminal matters."

Kanyakumari-based Stillman, who is married to an Indian, has lived in India for the last 30 years and is the founder of the Nambikkai Foundation for the deaf.

Stone deaf since the age of two, he was arrested during a trip to the Kulu/Manali region last year where he said he was trying to expand his charitable work. <>Stillman's sister Elspeth Dugdale, who lives near Winchester in Hampshire, told rediff.com that her brother was arrested after his taxi was stopped by the police roadblock in Kulu.

According to the police, he was carrying a green bag with 20 kgs of charas (a psychotropic substance) in resin form.

At his trial in June in Kulu before Sessions Judge Vaidya, the local street value of the charas was estimated at Rs two crores (Rs 20 million).

After being convicted, Stillman said he would lodge an appeal before the Himachal Pradesh High Court in Shimla. A bail hearing has been scheduled for July 9.

Stillman and his family insist he is innocent.

Elspeth, who is the moving spirit behind an international campaign to have Ian freed on bail, has pointed out that he was also a victim of miscarriage of justice since he was denied an interpreter during the trial.

Although he is able to lip read, he was unable to follow the proceedings of the trial because it was conducted in Hindi. At the end of the trial, he was asked to sign a form that stated he had understood and followed everything that had been said in court.

Meanwhile, Venu Gopal told the Delhi-based media that Stillman had no hearing or speech impediments, implying that his handicap claim was a convenient cover for sinister activities.

Venu Gopal's assertion, however, flies against the evidence made available in London by Stillman's father, a retired headmaster, who confirmed to rediff.com and to the British Foreign Office that his son has been stone deaf since the age of two.

It was because of his deafness that Stillman was pulled out of the elite Leighton Park public school and sent to the Brixton College at the age of 17. He was then admitted to the Guildford College of Art from where he graduated with a diploma.

In June, Elspeth Dugdale and her husband Jerry appealed to Indian High Commissioner to Britain Nareshwar Dayal to intervene on Stillman's behalf.

British Foreign Office told them that Foreign Secretary Jack Straw and Prime Minister Tony Blair were also taking a personal interest in Stillman's case.

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