Kerala HC dismisses plea of Addl. Director General of Police

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

Kochi, Oct 4 (UNI) The Kerala high court today dismissed a petition filed by state Addl. Director General of Police K G Premshankar challenging the order of the chief judicial magistrate, Ernakulam, refusing to drop prosecution proceedings against him in a criminal case.

Justice V Ramkumar rejected the senior police official's plea that the CJM's order dated February 22, 2007 was erroneous as there was no valid sanction to prosecute him.

The high court also directed the trial judge to commence the trial forthwith and dispose of the case within seven months.

It also directed the petitioner to appear before the trial court without notice on October 24, 2007.

The case against the senior IPS officer is that on February 12, 1988, while serving as Superintendent of Police at Kannur, he conspired with other police personnel and severely beat one Maniyeri Madhavan, who was the editor of a local news paper 'Sudinam'.

Madhavan thereafter filed complaints and finally the Supreme Court directed a CBI investigation into the alleged incident.

The case was posted for trial at the Ernakulam CJM's court, where Mr Premshankar filed an application to drop the proceedings on the ground that there was no valid sanction to prosecute him. He contended that as he was in Central service, the permission of the Central Government was required to prosecute him.

The CJM dismissed his application, holding that the state government's order on December 21, 1995, to prosecute him was valid as at the time of the incident, he was employed in the state.

Coming down severely on the delay in the case, the high court today observed that the facts unravelled by the various stages of the chequred career of this ''seemingly interminable case, reveal the shockingly disturbing manner in which an investigation ordered by no less a court than the highest court of this country and the consequent prosecution have been attempted to be sabotaged by an IPS officer by grossly abusing the process of various courts.'' The court also said that "the petitioner has been indulging in dilatory tactics of the worst order".

UNI

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