KOCHI: The state government on Wednesday approached the High Court challenging the Ernakulam sessions court’s order that restricted jail authorities’ presence ‘within visible and audible limits’ during the questioning of Swapna Suresh, Sarith P S and Sandeep Nair by the Enforcement Directorate.
The petition, filed by the director-general of prisons and correctional services, said the order was illegal. When various agencies have already interrogated the accused, jail authorities cannot be restricted from being present during the questioning in this case, it said.
The accused is housed under the care and protection of jail authorities. Their exclusion during interrogation would defeat the purpose of the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, submitted senior state public prosecutor Suman Chakravarthy.
In all, Swapna has been in custody for 32 days and the customs had questioned her three times at Attakulangara prison. When the customs and the NIA interrogated the accused, there was no restriction on jail authorities. The state argued that there are no special circumstances in this case that warrants such a restriction. When an accused is permitted to be interrogated inside the prison in the absence of authorities, it could not be in the best interests of safety and security of the prisoner who is in judicial custody, the state argued.