Kochi: The High Court on Tuesday severely criticized former Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) director Jacob Thomas, the second time in a week during the hearing of the Pattoor Land case, and observed that his comments in social media amount to contempt of court. The court made the observations in a petition filed by former chief secretary Bharat Bhushan and others seeking the annulment of the Pattoor Case.
The court came down heavily on the former Vigilance Chief for his refusal to submit an explanation with records in connection with the case. The court had summoned him for a personal appearance earlier and sought the circumstances of filing the case and any evidence of tampering with records. He was also asked to submit an affidavit on these issues. However he failed to submit the affidavit. The court took strong objection and castigated the former vigilance chief during the hearing a week ago.
Instead of submitting the affidavit, Jacob Thomas had issued a facebook post alluding to certain aspects of the case titled ‘Lesson-5: The Accounts of Truth’. The High Court came down heavily on this and said that if anything was to be informed to the court it should be in the form of an affidavit or submission. The facts to be submitted in the court could not be conveyed through social media and any attempt to do so would be dealt with seriously, the court said.
