High Court goes hi-tech, hears bail pleas through video conferencing

Desperate times call for desperate measures. Amid Covid-19 scare, the Kerala HC on Monday saw such an event when a judge heard the arguments sitting in his chamber via video conferencing while the advocates & the govt pleader made submissions from the court hall.

Justice Raja Vijayaraghavan heard eight bail petitions through video conferencing  as the courtroom turned virtual for the first time in the history of the Kerala HC.The proceedings was through Zoom video conference app, on which the judge & lawyers were connected. Through this, the advocates reach the courtroom & request the court officer to begin the proceedings. The court officer connects the programme in which the judge & the lawyer appear live.

Advocate T A Unnikrishnan who obtained a favourable order via video-conferencing said it was a fairly good choice in these circumstances. It helps in social distancing as per the advisory of the state govt in the wake of the coronavirus threat.

In the proceedings, the court granted bail to Vasu & Anilkumar, who are the accused persons in a crime registered in Thenmala police station. The charges against them are Sections 341 (wrongful restraint), 323 (Voluntarily causing hurt) & 326 (A) (acid attack) of the Indian Penal Code. The prosecution alleged that due to the previous animosity with the victim, the first accused wrongfully restrained the victim a& poured acid on him.

The incident happened at Ottakkal, Thenmala, on Mar 2. The police also alleged that the first & second accused caught hold of the victim & the second accused bit him on his chest. The defence counsel argued that the petitioners were innocent.

The court also considered the bail plea of an accused in a murder case in Thiruvananthapuram. The accused person killed one Sangeeth using the JCB earth mover’s arm. When the court said it was not inclined to grant bail, the petitioner’s counsel sought adjournment.

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