The admission by NV Raju, Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (Economic Offences), Kochi before the Vigilance Registrar of the Kerala High Court that he had not recorded solar scam perpetrator Saritha S Nair’s complaint in July has rekindled the Opposition’s war against CM Oommen Chandy, who is accused of direct involvement in the infamous scandal.
Alleging that the judge, with his refusal to record the con woman’s statement, had effectively sabotaged the entire legal procedures related to the scandal, the CPI(M)-led Opposition lDF and the BJP said that the judge had committed the irregularity deliberately under the influence of certain people who were acting on behalf of Chandy.
The Opposition’s protest campaign demanding Chandy’s resignation over the scandal had lost steam after the lDF had on August 13 withdrawn its siege to the State Secretariat on the basis of a mere offer made by the Government that a judicial probe would be held. The judge’s admission in response to the HC-instituted probe has rekindled that anti-Chandy campaign.
“This is not a crime the judge had committed all by himself but there was pressure on him to act so,” said State BJP general secretary K Surendran. The HC Registrar had held a probe against Judge Raju on complaints lodged by Surendran and a lawyer. The judge’s admission that he had failed to record Saritha’s statement had been described in Registrar’s report.
“Judge Raju had in fact recorded Saritha’s statement. But he tore it off later following pressures from outside. Saritha’s statement was sabotaged due to pressures from political and bureaucratic levels,” Surendran said, demanding an investigation into the matter under the direct supervision of the High Court.
He suspected that a person who had for a long time been a junior to Advocate General KP Dandapani and who was now with the Judicial Academy had involvement in the sabotage of the statement of the con woman. “Telephone call records of all these people should be examined. Otherwise, how is the truth going to come outIJ” he asked.