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Kerala Judge named accused in son’s fatal Mercedes crash gets anticipatory bail

By · Via Times of India · Published by Everything Blog

In short

Justice Kauser Edappagath restrained police from arresting the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal judge while ordering his compliance with Supreme Court interrogation standards during future questioning. Defense counsel stated the officer had already cooperated through four hours of initial interrogation, yet representatives for the deceased two-wheeler rider argued against pre-arrest relief due to potential evidence tampering. The state must now formally submit its response to the anticipatory bail petition. Meanwhile, the Kerala High Court's Administrative Committee convened a preliminary meeting to address the victim's family's complaints regarding the judge's conduct.

Key points

  • The judge claimed in his plea that he was asleep and completely unaware his son had taken…: The judge claimed in his plea that he was asleep and completely unaware his son had taken the vehicle until receiving a phone call.
  • Legal representatives for the deceased opposed the bail petition by accusing the judicial…: Legal representatives for the deceased opposed the bail petition by accusing the judicial officer of tampering with crash evidence.
  • The Kerala High Court Administrative Committee decided to review additional material from…: The Kerala High Court Administrative Committee decided to review additional material from the police before taking disciplinary action against the judge.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

KOCHI: The Kerala high court on Thursday granted interim protection from arrest to the additional district judge whose 17-year-old son allegedly drove a Mercedes-Benz that hit a two-wheeler in Kochi, killing the rider.

Justice Kauser Edappagath passed the order on an anticipatory bail plea filed by the judge, who is posted at a Motor Accident Claims Tribunal in Irinjalakuda, Thrissur district.

“The police shall not arrest the applicant until further orders. However, he shall appear before the investigating officer today at 1pm and if necessary as and when called for. The interrogation of the applicant shall be done in accordance with the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court,” the court ordered.

Senior advocate P Vijaya Bhanu, appearing for the judge, told the court that his client had appeared before the police on Wednesday and was interrogated for more than four hours. Another notice directing him to appear before the police had since been issued.

Questioning the need for further interrogation and custodial questioning, the court remarked, “What was the need to interrogate him for four hours and now for…

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