The Hindu : Kerala News : Nalini case hearing to resume tomorrow

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Monday, Jan 31, 2005

Kerala

Kerala

Nalini case hearing to resume tomorrow

By Our Staff Reporter

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, JAN. 30. The Judicial First Class Magistrate Court II, Sreekala Suresh, will resume hearing arguments in the case involving former Transport Minister Neelalohidadasan Nadar and former Transport Secretary Nalini Netto on Tuesday.

The case is that Mr. Nadar had attempted to outrage the modesty of Ms. Netto in his office in the Assembly complex on December 21, 1999.

The prosecution started its argument on January 25 after the defence witness Sheik Ahammed, who was expected to testify before the court, failed to turn up on the specified date.

The High Court had earlier granted the defence witness time till January 25 to appear before the court.

The request by defence counsel V.G. Govindan Nair to examine more witnesses in the case on grounds that the hearing has been transferred to a new court had been turned down by the magistrate. The magistrate clarified that the new court is holding additional responsibilities of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court III and only those proceedings pending before that court will be followed by the new court.

The plea by the prosecution to defer the hearing, as a writ petition had already been filed by the members of the Sthree Vedi before the High Court demanding the same, had also been turned down by the magistrate.

Justice K. Padmanabhan Nair of the Kerala High Court on January 25 dismissed at the admission stage itself a petition filed by Nalini Netto seeking a direction for transferring the sexual harassment case against the former Minister to the Additional Sessions Judge. According to the petition, the judge, before being promoted as sessions judge, had worked as Judicial First Class Magistrate III, Thiruvananthapuram, and almost completed the trial in the case.

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