KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Tuesday declined the plea of the accused in the Sister Abhaya murder case to defer the examination of witnesses amidst the pandemic until further orders. The court observed that the criminal proceedings of a case registered in 1992 are yet to attain finality, whether it be by reason of providence or design.
The case goes back to March 1992 when Sister Abhaya, a Catholic nun, was found dead in a water well of her convent in Kottayam.
Justice VG Arun held that the trial in the case before Thiruvananthapuram CBI special court should be rescheduled to the nearest possible date and examination of witnesses conducted on a day-to-day basis as mandated under section 309(1) of CrPC.
The court passed the order while disposing of the petition filed by the accused persons -- Fr Thomas Kottoor and Sister Sephy -- against the decision to examine the witnesses during the pandemic period. Counsel for the petitioners submitted that the pandemic situation has worsened over the past two weeks and the trial should be deferred until further orders.
According to them, under the prevailing circumstances, it is impossible for the senior counsel appearing for the first accused to travel from Ernakulam, where he is residing, to Thiruvananthapuram for conducting the cross-examination of the prosecution witnesses. Besides, cross-examination will not be perfect through video conferencing and there may be chances of disruption due to slow internet speed.
The CBI submitted that the Abhaya case is one of the oldest criminal pending cases in the state and the spread of COVID cannot be projected as a reason for further delaying disposal of the case. According to the CBI, the special court is equipped with the facility to conduct trial through video conferencing.
The harsh reality of the threat of coronavirus continuing for some more time has to be accepted by all. The functioning of the courts should continue, lest the justice delivery system come to a grinding halt. To ensure such functioning, the stakeholders should adapt to alternative methods like online filing and video conferencing.
The court said if the senior counsel appearing for the accused is, for any reason, unable to be physically present in the court, cross-examination of witnesses through video conferencing should be allowed if any request is made.
In such an event, a junior counsel with technical knowhow shall be permitted to be present in court to assist the senior counsel. All efforts shall be taken to maintain audio and video quality throughout the video conferencing. Any technical snag occurring during cross-examination can be brought to the notice of the special judge.