KOCHI: On Friday, September 16, a division bench of the Kerala High Court stayed the transfer order of a lower court judge who made news by releasing activist Civic Chandran on anticipatory bail.
S. Krishnakumar, the chief district and sessions judge in Kozhikode (Calicut), had ruled last month that a sexual harassment claim would not be supported by the evidence if the victim was dressed in a "sexually provocative attire." A Dalit writer complained that Chandran, who is in his 70s, tried to kiss her on the neck and offended her modesty, prompting Krishnakumar to check into the situation.
Soon after this incident, a commotion developed, leading to the removal of the lower court judge to the position of Presiding Officer of the Labour Court in Kollam.
The court denied the argument, noting that the petitioner (appellant), a member of the higher judicial service, could not be said to have been affected in any way by his appointment as the Presiding Officer of the Labour Court, a position that was created from the cadre of District Judges.
The judge appealed this decision before the Division Bench of Justices A.K. Jayashankaran Nambiar and C.P. Mohammed Nias, which caused the transfer order to be suspended.
Earlier, the Kerala government had turned up the High Court soliciting to set aside the sessions court orders granting bail to the sexual harassment accused author.
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