The Supreme Court on Thursday barred Nehru Group of Institutions chairman P. Krishnadas from entering Kerala till the trial in the case regarding the assault on Shaheer Shoukath Ali, a student of the Nehru Academy of Law in Palakkad, is completed.
When Mr. Krishnadas’s counsel Ranjit Kumar made an objection, a Bench led by Justice N.V. Ramana on Thursday said, “We have not sent you to the forest.”
Continuation of order
Mr. Krishnadas will remain in Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu. Today’s order is a continuation of the July 7 order directing Krishnadas stay outside Kerala.
The Bench directed that the trial court decide the case without being influenced by any adverse observations made against the police investigation.
The court further asked the Kerala Police to produce the State Director General of Police’s assessment report in connection with a plea to transfer the investigation into the alleged harassment by college authorities and death of Thrissur student Jishnu Pranoy to the CBI.
The first-year engineering student was found dead in a hostel of the Nehru College of Engineering and Research Centre in Thrissur in January this year. The court ordered the production of the records on November 17, the next date of hearing.
The CBI had recently invited the SC’s wrath by refusing the State’s request to take over the Pranoy case citing workload. The agency had said that there was no circumstances which required a CBI probe in the case.
The apex court is hearing Kerala government’s petition seeking cancellation of the bail granted by the Kerala High Court order to accused Krishnadas and college vice principal N.K. Sakthivel, who have been charged with abetment of suicide.
The State, represented by senior advocate Harin Raval, argued that bail at this point would run the risk of the accused influencing witnesses.
The police submitted that 82 witnesses have been examined, 16 documents have been seized and five electronic evidence are being analysed and will be done in 15 days.
