ADM's death Kerala court rejects anticipatory bail plea of CPI M leader Divya

    Kannur (Kerala), Oct 29 (PTI) A Kerala court on Tuesday rejected the anticipatory bail plea of CPI(M) leader P P Divya, who is accused of abetting the suicide of former Kannur Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Naveen Babu.
    The Principal District and Sessions Judge, Thalassery, K T Nissar Ahammed, issued the order rejecting the plea filed by Divya, who is the former president of the Kannur district panchayat. The details of the order are awaited.
    Attending his send-off function allegedly uninvited on 14 October, Divya had criticised Babu for delaying the approval of a petrol pump in Chengalai for several months and remarked that he granted approval only two days after being transferred, hinting that she knew the reasons behind the sudden approval.
    The following day, Babu was found dead at his quarters in Kannur.
    Divya moved the Thalassery Sessions Court on 19 October, seeking anticipatory bail after the police registered a case against her for abetting the suicide of the ADM under Section 108 of the BNSS.
    Babu's family welcomed the court's decision.
    Reacting to the verdict, Babu's widow Manjusha said, "The person responsible for destroying our lives must be arrested, and we will go to any lengths to ensure justice."
    "I have nothing more to say, but we will go to any extent," Manjusha told reporters at her residence in Malayalappuzha in Pathanamthitta district.
    During the hearing of her anticipatory bail plea, Divya had told the court that her remarks against the ADM were based on complaints of corruption she had received regarding him.
    Divya's lawyer had also informed the court that the Kannur District Collector had told her about the farewell ceremony for Babu and asked whether she would be attending, to which she had replied in the affirmative.
    Countering Divya's arguments, the prosecution submitted the Kannur District Collector's statement, which indicated that Divya was never invited to the ceremony and that he had requested her not to make any corruption allegations at the event.
    The lawyer representing Babu's family had stated that both he and the prosecution opposed Divya's bail plea, particularly since she was removed from the post of District Panchayat President by the CPI(M) after being booked for abetting the ADM's suicide.
    The lawyer had added that the prosecution strenuously opposed the bail plea on various grounds, including that Divya's act of making those allegations was "pre-planned," that she could manipulate evidence, and that she was not cooperating with the Revenue Department's investigation.
    The prosecution had also informed the court that there were no corruption complaints against Babu.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)