The Madras High Court on Wednesday dismissed the bail petitions of the correspondent of Zion Group of Schools at Selaiyur and a Motor Vehicles Inspector (MVI) in the case relating to the death of class-II student, S. Sruthi, after she fell through a hole in the school bus at Mudichur on July 25.
The petitions had been filed by N. Vijayan, correspondent of Zion Group of Schools, and P. Rajasekaran, MVI, Tambaram.
Justice G.M. Akbar Ali said Mr. Vijayan’s responsibility was to maintain school vehicles and ensure that students were not exposed to any danger. Even though he was aware of the existence of a gaping hole in the floor of the bus, he did not take any action.
As far as the MVI was concerned, it was a blatant lie to say that he did not notice a hole in the floor of the bus when the vehicle was sent for a fitness examination, the judge said. Either he ignored the presence of the hole covered by a plank, or he did not inspect the vehicle before issuing a fitness certificate. Such an act would amount to having knowledge that the hole was likely to cause death or bodily injury to any passenger, he said.
Citing a Supreme Court decision, Justice Akbar Ali said he was satisfied that the nature of the accusation, gravity of the offence and the severity of the punishment in the present case fell under Section 304 (ii) IPC as the petitioners were negligent.
They were also influential and there was reasonable apprehension that they may tamper with witnesses if released on bail, though they may not escape justice, the judge said.
He said that looking at the gravity of the offence, where an innocent six-year-old child lost her life for no fault of hers, in his considered view, each and every one who had the knowledge about the death trap in the form of a hole in the floor of the bus, should be faulted. The petitioners could not plead innocence, he said, and dismissed the plea.
