The City Police, which had been cracking its whip on drunk driving since Commissioner S George took over, exerted the right amount of pressure to ensure Empee Group scion Shaji’s arrest.
The City Police managed to obtain orders to declare Shaji as an absconding accused/ proclaimed offender (PO) on Tuesday and the Court directed the police to publish a written proclamation requiring him to appear before the XIV Metropolitan Magistrate Court 10 am on July 19. The proclamation will enable the court to attach any movable and immovable asset of the PO.
Based on the intelligence collected by the City Police, a special team led by an inspector was stationed in Kochi since Tuesday morning expecting the arrival of Shaji who was reportedly hiding in Thailand. Earlier, the cops obtained a non-bailable warrant on June 7. As the pressure mounted, Shaji, as expected, returned to the country and was detained by the immigration officials.
Emphasis was laid on curbing drink driving cases after the high incidence of accidents was brought to the notice of the commissioner. Every night, police book at least 150 drunk drivers across 60 check posts in the city.
