Kerala - Kochi   

Ragging case: plea by convicted dismissed

Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Wednesday dismissed a petition filed by two students who were convicted in a ragging case at the School of Medical Education in Kottayam, seeking to suspend the punishment of 10-year rigorous imprisonment.

The students were sentenced by the Kottayam Special Court.

Dismissing the petition filed by first-accused Ranjith Varghese and second-accused S. Sherin, Justice V. Ramkumar observed that under the guise of ragging, the petitioners who were third-year nursing students, with the aid of their friend, were found to have committed gang rape of a first year nursing student hailing from a poor family.

The court said the petitioners had been found guilty after a protracted trial. f they were to be released on bail after suspending the sentence, “this court will be sending a wrong message to the peace loving community. Once a court convicts an accused person, the presumption of innocence comes to an end.”

The court also pointed out that the accused hailed from wealthy families while the victim was said to hail from “impecunious circumstances”.

The judge, however, clarified that this court shall not be understood to have expressed any opinion on the merits of the matter one way or other and the observations shall be taken “as confined only to the disposal of these petitions.” he petition seeking to suspend the sentence was filed along with the appeal submitted against the Kottayam special court’s verdict sentencing them to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment and imposing a fine of Rs.20,000 each on them in the case.

The incident took place on October 21, 2005.

The third-accused, Sheffeeq Yusuf, was sentenced to three years’ rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs.5,000.

Justice Thottathil B. Radhakrishnan on Wednesday directed the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Court, Kasaragod, and Superintendent of Police, Kasaragod, to inquire into an incident in which a mentally challenged person was chained at Cherkala.

The court also directed them to file an action-taken report before the court. The order was passed in a suo motu proceeding issued based on a report submitted by the amicus curie in cases relating to the condition of the mental health centres in the State. The report said the young man was chained, as his parents could not afford to treat him.

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