THOOTHUKUDI: An advocate has questioned the credibility and transparency of the one-man commission probing the Thoothukudi police firing incident, as the commission did not permit him to cross-examine all witnesses even though he was the counsel for one of them.
Advocate Pandiyarajan, the counsel for Henri Tiphagne, executive director of People’s Watch, an NGO, said section 8 (c) of the Commission of Inquiry Act, 1952 grants him the right to cross-examine witnesses. Tiphagne was earlier questioned by the commission with respect to the incident.
Pandiyarajan said he submitted a petition on September 21, seeking permission to cross-examine witnesses at the commission’s camp office on South Beach Road. “They did not even consider my petition. On Thursday, I was forcibly sent out. My plea to have at least a glimpse of the inquiry was also denied,” the lawyer alleged.
‘Cross examination hasn’t been allowed’
A member of the panel, on condition of anonymity, said no commission has allowed cross-examination of witnesses before, and added that an order must be passed to give such a permission