A CBI court here has banned the media from publishing the statements of witnesses in the Periya twin murder case. The court has also barred the entry of media in the court hall for reporting the case.
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The order was issued by CBI Special Judge K. Kamanees, who is hearing the case related to the killing of two Youth Congress workers, Sharat Lal and Kripesh.
However, the statements of government officials listed as witnesses in the case could be reported.
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To protect the witnesses
The prosecution, which wanted the media to be kept out of the court during trial to “ensure proper protection and safety of the witnesses,” had pointed out that the murder and related incidents had set off a chain of political violence in the State. It contended that the witnesses in the case were vulnerable to threat and attack.
It argued that the witnesses to the crime were living in fear and faced possible threat to their lives. They were also undergoing tremendous stress and trauma during court proceedings. A vulnerable witness will have to face misery, life threats, coercion and harassment and may tend to crack and turn hostile, it feared.
Proper protection and safety of the witnesses has to be ensured as the case has caught wide attention. Publicising the news, photographs and details of witnesses may imperil their lives, it feared.
Against the interest of justice
The court, which didn’t go into the allegations of threats to the witnesses from the accused, felt that publishing the references made by the witnesses during their examination will be against the interest of justice.
The Youth Congress leaders were hacked to death by a group of assailants on February 17, 2019. The CBI had had arraigned a few prominent CPI (M) leaders including a former legislator as accused in the case. The Supreme Court had ordered a CBI probe into the killings after turning down the plea of the State government.