THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Tension erupted in Vanchiyoor court complex after a section of lawyers protested against a woman magistrate for cancelling the bail of a KSRTC driver arraigned in a motor accident case. The magistrate cancelled the bail after the complainant revealed that she was threatened by the driver. Irked by the decision, the lawyers reportedly waylaid the magistrate.
Dramatic incidents unfolded at noon when judicial first class magistrate Deepa Mohan, while hearing a case, ordered the cancellation of bail bond of Mani, a KSRTC driver attached to Pappanamcode depot. Mani had appeared before the court in connection with a case registered in 2015.
A woman passenger named Lathakumari travelling in the bus driven by Mani had suffered injuries after falling inside the vehicle. She alleged that she fell after the driver applied brake suddenly. When the case came up, Lathakumari told the court that she was threatened by the accused to settle the case out of court.
The magistrate immediately ordered the cancellation of the bail of the driver and remanded him to judicial custody. Legal sources said defence lawyer N Chandrasekharan Nair objected to the decision and asked for a review.
Bar assn to boycott magistrate
Chandrasekharan Nair pleaded not to cancel Mani’s bail bond and instead register a separate criminal miscellaneous case. But, it went unheeded. Following this, Nair took up the matter with the Bar Association leaders who went to the magistrate’s chamber. Sources said the magistrate was forced to stay put and could move out only after a while. The protesters soon swelled in numbers and the chief judicial magistrate had to intervene to break the deadlock. The agitating lawyers said the offence committed by the driver was a bailable one and sending him to remand was unwarranted.
Later, the case was posted before District Sessions Judge K Babu. Nair argued that the cancellation of bail bond was unjustifiable as no inquiry was carried out to verify the statement of the witness. The court endorsed the argument and allowed the filing of criminal miscellaneous case. Mani was later released on bail on his executing bond for `10,000 with two solvent sureties. It has been learnt that the Bar Association has decided to boycott the magistrate for an indefinite period. The magistrate has registered her complaint with the chief judicial magistrate.