Kerala High Court
Krishnan Kartha vs K. Dinakaran on 11 February, 2025
Author: Kauser Edappagath
Bench: Kauser Edappagath
OP(CRL.) NO. 896 OF 2024
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2025:KER:11123
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE DR. JUSTICE KAUSER EDAPPAGATH
TUESDAY, THE 11TH DAY OF FEBRUARY 2025 / 22ND MAGHA, 1946
OP(CRL.) NO. 896 OF 2024
CC NO.1332 OF 2019 OF JUDICIAL MAGISTRATE OF FIRST
CLASS, KATTAKADA
PETITIONER/PETITIONER IN CMP 5378/2024/COMPLAINANT IN CC
1332/2019:
KRISHNAN KARTHA
AGED 56 YEARS
S/O. LATE SRIKANDAN KARTHA,
RESIDING AT 'DAKSHINIYAM',
NEAR POLICE COLONY PULIYARAKONAM,
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM., PIN - 695573
BY ADVS.
ARUN KUMAR.P
THIYYANNOOR RAMAKRISHNAN
AMBIKA RADHAKRISHNAN
KAVYA SURESH
RESPONDENT/COUNTER PETITIONER IN CMP 5378/2024/ACCUSED IN CC
1332/2019: :
K. DINAKARAN,
S/O JANARDHANAN, SECRETARY,
KERALA THEOSOPHICAL FEDERATION,
OP(CRL.) NO. 896 OF 2024
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2025:KER:11123
RESIDING AT 'SAROJA', TRIKKUR,
THRISSUR DISTRICT., PIN - 680306
BY ADV K.P.SURESH KUMAR
OTHER PRESENT:
M.P. PRASANTH, PP
THIS OP (CRIMINAL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON
11.02.2025, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE
FOLLOWING:
OP(CRL.) NO. 896 OF 2024
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2025:KER:11123
JUDGMENT
The petitioner is the complainant in C.C.No.1332 of 2019 on the files of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, Kattakkada (for short 'the trial court') and the respondent herein is the accused. The offence alleged is punishable under Section 500 of IPC. The case was taken on file based on a private complaint filed by the petitioner. The allegation in the complaint is that the respondent published defamatory allegations against him through the medium of WhatsApp through an account generated by a particular SIM inserted in the mobile phone of the respondent. The said mobile phone has been seized and produced before the court. The petitioner filed Ext.P4 application before the trial court to send the mobile phone of the respondent so seized to the State Forensic Science Laboratory, Marathahalli- Sarjapur Road, Madiwala, Venkatapura, HSR Layout 5 th Sector, Bengaluru, Karnataka for scientific examination. The said application was allowed as per Ext. P5 order. The petitioner OP(CRL.) NO. 896 OF 2024 4 2025:KER:11123 remitted the fee for sending the mobile phone for scientific examination. Thereafter, since there was a delay on the part of the trial court to forward the mobile phone to the State Forensic Science Laboratory, the petitioner filed Ext.P7 application to depute an officer of the court to take the mobile phone to the laboratory. However, the application was dismissed as per Ext.P8 order. The said order is under challenge in this original petition.
2. I have heard Sri.Arun Kumar.P, the learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri.M.P. Prasanth., the learned Public Prosecutor.
3. Ext. P7 application was dismissed as per Ext. P8 order on the ground that no provision of law had been cited to enable the court to issue the warrant to depute a court staff to take the mobile phone to the State Forensic Science Laboratory, Bengaluru. When Ext.P5 order was passed by the trial court to send the mobile phone in question to the State Forensic Science Laboratory, it is upto the trial court to take effective steps to OP(CRL.) NO. 896 OF 2024 5 2025:KER:11123 ensure that the mobile phone reached the State Forensic Science Laboratory for examination. It is quite strange to note that even though Ext.P5 order was passed as early as on 30/10/2021, so far no steps have been taken by the trial court to forward the mobile phone to the State Forensic Science Laboratory.
4. In the absence of a specific provision in this regard, I directed the learned Public Prosecutor to take instructions as to the practice followed in the trial court. The Public Prosecutor submitted that the practice followed in the trial court is that the Chief Ministerial Officer would either send the material object for examination to the State Forensic Science Laboratory through a courier service or depute a court staff to take the material object to the State Forensic Science Laboratory.
5. In the above circumstances, the impugned order dismissing Ext.P7 application on the ground that no provision of law was cited cannot be sustained and accordingly it is set aside. Ext.P7 application stands allowed. The trial court is directed to depute a court staff to take the mobile phone to the State OP(CRL.) NO. 896 OF 2024 6 2025:KER:11123 Forensic Science Laboratory under proper authority. The petitioner shall deposit the costs for the same including expenditure of travel and accommodation of the court staff before the trial court.
The original petition is disposed of as above.
Sd/-
DR.KAUSER EDAPPAGATH, JUDGE AS OP(CRL.) NO. 896 OF 2024 7 2025:KER:11123 APPENDIX OF OP(CRL.) 896/2024 PETITIONER EXHIBITS EXHIBIT P1 TRUE COPY OF THE COMPLAINT PREFERRED BY THE PETITIONER AGAINST THE RESPONDENT BEFORE THE JUDICIAL FIRST CLASS MAGISTRATE COURT, KATTAKADA AND NUMBERED AS CMP NO. 4199/2019 IN CC NO. 1332 OF 2019 EXHIBIT P2 TRUE COPY OF THE JUDGMENT DATED 20-11- 2019 IN OP(CRL) NO. 510/2019 EXHIBIT P3 TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 03.12.2019 IN CMP NO. 4199(A) OF 2019 OF THE JUDICIAL FIRST CLASS MAGISTRATE COURT, KATTAKADA EXHIBIT P4 TRUE COPY OF THE PETITION, CRL.MP NO.452 OF 2021 IN CC NO. 1332 OF 2019 FILED BY THE PETITIONER BEFORE THE JUDICIAL FIRST CLASS MAGISTRATE COURT, KATTAKADA EXHIBIT P5 TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 30.10.2021 IN CMP NO.452 OF 2021 OF THE JUDICIAL FIRST CLASS MAGISTRATE COURT, KATTAKADA EXHIBIT P6 TRUE COPY OF THE E-RECEIPT DATED 12.03.2024 WITH CHALLAN REFERENCE NO. CR0324005500140679 EVIDENCING PAYMENT OF RS. 10,000/- BY WAY OF NET BANKING EXHIBIT P7 TRUE COPY OF THE PETITION CMP NO.5378 OF 2024 IN CC NO. 1332 OF 2019 PREFERRED BY THE PETITIONER BEFORE THE JUDICIAL FIRST CLASS MAGISTRATE COURT, KATTAKADA OP(CRL.) NO. 896 OF 2024 8 2025:KER:11123 EXHIBIT P8 TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 1.11.2024 OF THE JUDICIAL FIRST CLASS MAGISTRATE COURT, KATTAKADA IN CMP NO.5378 OF 2024 IN CC NO. 1332 OF 2019