Cheriyan Case: Court Rejects Plea To Defer A Final Decision On The Police Report

A day after CPI(M) leader Saji Cheriyan was sworn in as Minister, a Kerala court on Thursday rejected a plea to defer its final decision on a police report which gives a clean chit to him in a case against him for his alleged remarks against the Constitution.
        
The Judicial First Class Magistrate Court at Thiruvalla here rejected the application by Baiju Noel M, a lawyer, who wanted a decision on the police report to be deferred as he had moved the Kerala High Court seeking a CBI probe into the issue.
        
The advocate confirmed that the Magisterial Court declined his plea.
        
It was on his complaint that the court had ordered the police to file a case in the matter.
        
Noel, in his application, had contended that the police did not conduct a fair, proper, and impartial investigation into the case.
        
Cheriyan was administered the oath of office on Wednesday by Governor Arif Mohammed Khan at the Raj Bhavan where MLAs of the Congress-led UDF opposition were absent in protest against the reinstatement of the CPI(M) leader in the Cabinet.
        
Both the Congress and BJP had held protests in the State against the reinstatement.
        
Khan initially created a flutter when he raised some concerns regarding the CPI(M) leader's reinstatement, saying "it was not a normal case", but he later approved the government's recommendation.
        
Last week, the CPI(M) decided to bring him back into the Cabinet.
        
The CPI(M) leader resigned in July last year from the Cabinet over his alleged remarks against the Constitution during a speech in Pathanamthitta district and the filing of a criminal case against him in that connection.