Judge’s arrest stayed by High Court becomes controversy in Kerala
The Kerala High Court has stayed the arrest of the father of a 17-year-old boy, who was driving the car in which a scooterist died after being hit by a luxury car in Kochi’s Cheranalloor. There has been widespread criticism of the court’s decision on social media. In cases where minors are allowed to drive, the parents are usually charged and arrested. The Cheranalloor police had named Additional District Judge Rino Francis Xavier of the Irinjalakkuda Motor Accident Claims Tribunal as the second accused in the case.
The public and the press sharply criticized the actions of the police who removed the car’s board and worked for the judge, who removed the photos immediately after the accident. Four police officers have been suspended and the Kochi Police Commissioner has been transferred. After coming out of the influence of the judge, the police made him the second accused in the case. While the police were preparing to arrest him, Rino Francis Xavier filed an anticipatory bail petition in the High Court. In the interim order, Justice Kauser Edappagath stayed the arrest. The interim order directed him to fully cooperate with the investigation and appear when called by the investigating officers.
The judge approached the High Court for anticipatory bail after the police issued a notice asking him to appear again for questioning on Thursday morning.
The main argument was that the son had not taken the car with his knowledge. He said he came to know about the incident while he was asleep when his son called him at 2.14 am. The court said it would examine the matter. The court, however, took into account the fact that he was questioned for four hours on Wednesday. The court also pointed out that the vehicle that caused the accident and the laptop and mobile phone were seized during the inspection at the residence. The district judge had stayed the arrest on the ground that the petitioner would not abscond. The High Court also directed him to appear for questioning on Thursday afternoon, according to the notice issued by the police.
The bail plea was strongly opposed by the government and the wife and children of the deceased Jayabalakrishnan, who were also parties in the case.
There is criticism on social media and in the public that the High Court’s stand that the accused will not go into hiding because he is a district judge and that he should not be arrested does not come under the provisions of the Constitution or the Indian Penal Code. The incident was taken up by the general public in Kerala through the struggle of Bhadrakeerthi, the daughter of the deceased, against the influence of the district judge in the management of the case and the abuse of the police system. The biggest controversy was when the culprit was released on bail from the police station even before the funeral pyre of the deceased was lit. The state leadership meeting of the Kerala Police Association, the only body of police personnel, decided on Friday that no officer should follow any orders and instructions that are not legal.
Reference
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