Petitioners sought directions to police to investigate the death of Sarala. The court recorded a police statement indicating no cognizable crime. The miscellaneous petition was disposed of as having no substance based on the preliminary enquiry.
The Criminal Miscellaneous Case was closed after recording the police statement.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
CRL.MC NO. 5272 OF 2014
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE P.V.KUNHIKRISHNAN
THURSDAY, THE 3RD DAY OF AUGUST 2023 / 12TH SRAVANA, 1945
CRL.MC NO. 5272 OF 2014
PETITIONER/S:
1 MR.SANTHOSH AGED 42 YEARS S/O.RAGHAVAN, KUPPAYIL HOUSE, KUREEKADU P.O.ERNAKULAM 682 305.
2 MRS.SHEELA GOPI AGED 45 YEARS W/O.GOPI, KOLLAMPARAMBIL HOUSE, KARIKODU,MULANTHURUTHY P.O ERNAKULAM DIST PIN 682 314.
3 MRS.LALITHA MURUKESH AGED 40 YEARS W/O.MURUKESH KUMAR, MUTTATHUKATTIL HOUSE,KAKKANAD P.O. KAKKANAD VILLAGE, ERNAKULAMPIN - 682 030. BY ADV SRI.VARGHESE P.CHACKO
RESPONDENT/S:
CRL.MC NO. 5272 OF 2014 2
ERNAKULAM RURAL, ALUVA, PIN - 683 101.
OTHER PRESENT:
MAYA M.N PP
THIS CRIMINAL MISC. CASE HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 03.08.2023, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY PASSED THE FOLLOWING:
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P.V.KUNHIKRISHNAN, J
Crl.M.C. No. 5272 of 2014
Dated this the 3rd day of August, 2023
O R D E R
This Criminal Miscellaneous case is filed to investigate Annexure-I petition. The petitioners are the brother's children of the deceased and they filed this case for issuing direction to the respondent- Police officers to investigate the death of Sarala.
“2. It is humbly submitted that the petitioner 1 & 2 filed a complaint before the respondents 2, 4,5 & 6 and the petition is sent to me by the Superior Officers and which is numbered as 51/P2/14/H3. The same petition, which is directly given to
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me is numbered as 294/PIPTN/14/H3. I conducted a preliminary enquiry on this petition. On enquiry, I understood that the allegations raised in the petition was incorrect.
3. It is submitted that, the deceased Sarojini @ Sarala and Sasikala @ Mani were sisters. The deceased Sarala is unmarried. Before 9 years, deceased Sarala and deceased Mani bought 10 Cents land comprised in Re-Survey No.432/6 of Manakunnam Village near SNDP School Nadakkavu, Udayamperoor. In the meanwhile one Mr.Balakrishnan Nai an Ex-Serviceman and a native of Kollam had married her sister Sasikala @ Mani. After some time, Sasikala @Mani became a cancer patient and knowing the same, Balakrishnan Nair left her. Till today there is no information about him to anybody. After that, 2 sisters, Sarala and Sasikala were living alone. During this time, one Mr. Vinod, who was a native of Punithura Village and his mother Omana came to her as neighbours of the deceased Sarojini and Sasikala. Later one Mr.Biju from Ameda area of Udayamperoor also bought a plot near their house and constructed a house in the said plot. The deceased Sarojini and deceased Mani helped Biju in this house construction, and they were lived like one family. Sarala and Mani helped Mr.Biju as their neighbour for the house construction. When the treatment of the Mani began, Biju, Vinod and Omana were the only persons helped them to conduct the treatment in Lourdes Hospital, Ernakulam. 4. It is submitted that, during this period Sarala and Mani sold 4 Cents of land to one Mr.Sasi of Poonithura, for meeting their livelihood and to overcome the debts incurred for treatment of Sasikala @ Mani and to solve their other financial
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liabilities. After meeting all these liabilities, they deposited Rs.3,00,000/- in Udayamperoor Service Co-operative Bank and met their expenses with the interest received from the deposit. In this period, Sarala is also confirmed as a cancer patient.
5. It is submitted that, in 2011 Mani had expired due to her illness. All petitioners are the close relatives of the deceased Mani, were not co-operated for the funeral of deceased Mani. The cremation of the Mani is conducted by Biju, Vinod and other local people.
6. It is submitted that, after the death of Mani, deceased Sarala became alone and she lived with the help and support of Biju and Vinod. None of their relatives including the 1st, 2nd and 3rd petitioners came forward to help or support her in her cancer treatment. He also not helped the deceased Sarala and Mani. The treatment was conducted at Lourdes Hospital, Ernakulam. At the time of treatment, Biju, Vinod and Omana were the only persons who helped Sarala, the deceased. During the treatment period, Sarala had nominated Biju and Vinod as nominees for the amount of Rs.3,00,000/deposited at Udayamperoor Service Co-operative Bank. After that she had registered her property to Biju and Vinod on 30.05.2014 at Sub Registrar Office, Tripunithura. There is no undue influence from the part of the Binju, Vinod and Omana to convey the property in their name. The statement of the Sub Registrar Officer itself proves this. After the registration of the property in favour of Biju and Vinod on 03.05.2014 Sarala had expired due to her illness on 12.05.2014 at 12 a.m. The gold ornaments which was owned by Sarala was in the
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hands of Omana, the mother of Vinod. Sarala, prior to her death instructed Omana what to do with this ornaments. At the time of death of Sarala also the petitioners who are the close relatives of Sarala not attended in the funeral. No other relatives of the deceased Sarala also not participated in the funeral. In this circumstance, Vinod and other local people of SNDP Unit took Sarala's body and taken to Municipal crematorium for cremation in accordance with the rituals on 13.05.2014 at 10 a.m. On preliminary enquiry, it is understood that the petitioners are looking to grab the property of the deceased. The petitioners have no relation with the deceased Sarala or with deceased Mani for more than 9 years. They never look into the welfare of the deceased when they are suffering from the cancer disease. After the death of Salara & Mani they came forward with an intention to grab property of the deceased as they were their relatives and to raise defence against Biju and Vinod that they committed undue influence to procure the property.
7. Moreover, I took the statement of Dr. Madhu, Oncology Department, Lourdes Hospital, Ernakulam, who conducted the treatment of the deceased. He stated that he last treated her on 26.04.2014. At that time the position of the patient is that, she would have survived only for two months and she had shown the symptoms of terminal illness.”
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nothing in it. If that is the case, nothing survives in this case.
Recording the statement of the Sub-Inspector of Police,
this Crl.M.C. is closed.
Sd/-
P.V.KUNHIKRISHNAN JUDGE
SKS
CRL.MC NO. 5272 OF 2014
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APPENDIX OF CRL.MC 5272/2014
PETITIONER ANNEXURES
ANNEXURE-1: COPY OF THE COMPLAINT DATED 1.8.2014 FILED BY THE PETITIONER BEFORE THE RESPONDENT POLICE OFFICIALS
1 issue framed by the court
Whether the criminal miscellaneous petition filed for investigation into the death of Sarala requires any judicial intervention given the preliminary police findings.
Mr. Santhosh
Mrs. Sheela Gopi
Mrs. Lalitha Murukesh
State of Kerala
P.V. Kunhikrishnan
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
