Kerala actress molestation: Legal fraternity divided over police act in court
Kochi: The legal fraternity is divided over the arrest of Pulsar Suni. the main accused in the abduction of the actor and the sexual assault case. A section of lawyers claim that there was nothing wrong in the police’s act, while another section called it a “well-scripted drama”. According to Advocate Udayabhanu, as per the section 41 of CRPC there is no illegality in the arrest. “Police was taking the accused into custody. There was nothing illegal,” he said. Former Director General of Prosecution T Asaf Ali also affirmed this view. He said “there is nothing illegal in the arrest but it is highly improper and grave negligence by the cops”.
Police should have arrested the accused much before they attempted to surrender before the court, he said and added that the police had erred in the investigation and failed to get any leads. However, Advocate Sangeetha Lakshamana alleged that the cops were acting according to a well scripted drama. “Why did they hurriedly act against the accused by taking them into custody? They could have waited for a day,” she said. Even if the accused had surrendered before the court, the magistrate could have only sent him to judicial custody. She pointed out.
“They could have filed a custody application and sought custody. In the long run, during the trial stage the accused can get away claiming the police forcefully made him confess,” she added. The lawyers in the court however criticized the police’s act. They claimed that once the accused entered the court room, police had no right to arrest the accused. They also alleged that the way the police dragged the accused out of the court was illegal. But, under Section 151 of the The Code Of Criminal Procedure, 1973 the Investigating Officer has a right to question the accused also. In some cases it is the duty of the Investigating Officer to interrogate the accused before arresting him. If an accused person surrenders directly before the Magistrate and the latter orders that he be taken into custody, the right of the police to interrogate him would be severely affected.
