The State government will shortly move a trial court in Ernakulam to withdraw the prosecution procedure against actor Mohanlal and others in the case related to the illegal possession of ivory.
The application for the withdrawal of the prosecution is likely to be submitted before the Perumbavoor Judicial First Class Magistrate Court 3 this week, government sources said.
The Forest Department had earlier booked Mr. Mohanlal and three others in the case which was registered at the Mekkappala Forest Station. The accused had violated the provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 and “illegally transacting and possessing ivory, according to the charge-sheet in the case. The reported illegal possession of ivory surfaced following an income tax raid on the actor’s house.
The charge-sheet filed by G. Dhaniklal, the Range Forest Officer, Kodanad, in the wildlife crime case noted that the actor had long been illegally possessing the ivory. He reportedly transferred it to his home in Ernakulam from Thiruvananthapuram and never sought permission for shifting the ivory from one place to another, the charge-sheet noted.
Earlier, the State government had issued a No Objection Certificate for the withdrawal of the case, which had taken the Forest Department by surprise as it was contesting the case in the trial court.
For withdrawing the prosecution, the State government will invoke the Section 321 of the Criminal Procedure Code. The Section empowers a Public Prosecutor or an Assistant Public Prosecutor in charge of a case to “withdraw from the prosecution of any person either generally or in respect of any one or more of the offences for which he is tried” with the consent of the court. The application for withdrawal of prosecution can be moved at any time before the judgment is pronounced.
At the same time, senior forest officials said the department was not aware of the developments regarding the withdrawal of prosecution. The department was not consulted regarding the reported withdrawal of prosecution of the case, officials said.
