A discreet inquiry has been ordered by the High Court of Kerala into the alleged “procedural flaws amounting to judicial dishonesty” committed by the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (Economic Offences), Ernakulam, while hearing the solar scam case.
The order was issued by Chief Justice Manjula Chellur on complaints filed by K. Surendran, general secretary of the BJP and A. Jayasankar, general secretary of the Indian Association of Lawyers (IAL).
S. Mohandas, Registrar (Vigilance) of the High Court, will look into the complaints.
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The Registrar will file his inquiry report to the Chief Justice. If the inquiry officer finds any substance in the allegations made against the magistrate, a disciplinary action will follow. The proceedings of the inquiry will not be a public one as the court has ordered a discreet inquiry, judicial sources said.
The inquiry is likely to begin next week.
The decision of the magistrate not to record the complaint of Saritha S. Nair, one of the accused in the case, even after listening to her for nearly 20 minutes, had invited criticism from various quarters. The proceedings followed by the magistrate had evoked a sharp response from various quarters including the lawyers, political leaders and judicial circles.
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In its complaint, the IAL requested that the judicial officer be placed under suspension immediately, failing which there is every chance of him tampering with the evidence available.
Mr. Surendran sought an inquiry against the magistrate in the interest of justice.