THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A controversy has erupted over the person who gave the petition urging the high court not to cancel the phone sex case against transport minister A. K. Saseendran. She allegedly is the maid of the PA of his predecessor Thomas Chandy who had to quit after a land-grab case. A TV channel spotted Mahalakshmi, a native of Thycaud at the residence of Sreekumar, an assistant vehicle inspector.
Mr Sreekumar had worked as an assistant private secretary while Mr Chandy was in office. She even admitted to the channel that her job was to look after the children of Mr Sreekumar. Though she had submitted a petition to the Thiruvananthapuram Chief Judicial Magistrate Court seeking not to cancel the case against Mr Saseendran, the court rejected it. She then petitioned the high court seeking to nullify the lower court order and to reinvestigate the case.
She has said in her petition that she too had a daughter and that acquitting Mr Saseendran was not right as it is a matter of women safety in general. She also said the female reporter who was the complainant, withdrew her case only because of fear. The government had alleged in the court that the address she had given, Bappuji Nagar, Thycaud, was fake. Mr Saseendran was taken back to the cabinet following the withdrawal of the complaint by the reporter.
