The Kerala High Court on Thursday (October 30) directed the police not to arrest an Additional District and Sessions Judge Reno Francis Xavier in connection with a fatal road accident involving his 17-year-old son, in which a scooterist was killed in Cheranalloor, Kochi, as reported in Verdictum.
Justice Kauser Edappagath passed the order after hearing the state and the counsel representing the judge on his anticipatory bail petition. The Court also directed the judge to cooperate with the ongoing investigation. The family of the deceased has filed an impleading petition, which the Court said it would consider at a later stage.
The judge had approached the High Court seeking anticipatory bail after the police named him as an accused in the case.
The incident occurred in the early hours of Sunday, when a speeding Mercedes-Benz car hit Jayabalakrishnan (55), a resident of South Chittoor in Cheranalloor, on Container Road at Marapparambu. The car was registered in the judge’s name.
According to the police, Jayabalakrishnan, who ran a roadside eatery, was returning home on his scooter when the accident took place.
The police initially registered a case under Section 106(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which deals with causing death by negligence. The minor was released on bail from the police station on Sunday evening.
This triggered protests outside the Cheranalloor police station, where the deceased’s son and daughter, accompanied by activists, demanded the arrest of the accused and his production before the Juvenile Justice Board.
Following the protests, senior police officers intervened. After a preliminary investigation, the police invoked Section 105 of the BNS, which deals with culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
Although the Juvenile Justice Board subsequently granted bail to the minor, the police named his father, the judge, as an accused in the case.
The judge was questioned by the police on Wednesday, with further questioning scheduled for Thursday afternoon.
Meanwhile, Jayabalakrishnan’s daughter, Bhadrakeerthi, expressed disappointment over the High Court’s decision but said the family respected the Court’s order.
“We are definitely disappointed, but we respect the High Court’s decision. We will discuss with our lawyer and decide on the next course of action. We intend to pursue the matter legally and will not take even a single step backwards. We will continue to fight,” she said.
Referring to the fact that a judge was on the opposite side in the case, she said the family would consult its lawyer on how to proceed further.
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