Authority: High Court of Kerala at Ernakulam
Order Date: 31 October 2023
Case Overview
- Petitioners: N.K. Prabhakara Naick (aged 64) and Ernakulam Thirumala Devaswom (represented by its committee members P. Rangadasa Prabhu, K.J. Radhakrishnan Kamath, P.S. Jayaprakash Prabhu, T.G. Rajaram Shenoy, R. Rama Narayana Prabhu) filed writ petitions WP(C) No. 38634/2016 and WP(C) No. 28421/2016.
- Respondents: State of Kerala (represented by the Secretary to Government, Home Department) and multiple senior police officials including the Director General of Police, Additional Director General of Police (Crimes), Inspector General of Police (Crimes), Superintendents and Deputy Superintendents of Police of the State Temple Anti‑Theft Squad, among others.
- Nature of proceedings: Civil writ petitions seeking a mandamus directing the respondents to (i) constitute a Special Investigating Team headed by an officer not below the rank of Deputy Inspector General of Police, under the supervision of the 3rd respondent, to investigate Crime No. 360/CR/STATS/2013 (Special Temple Anti‑Theft Squad case), and (ii) transfer the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for a time‑bound, fair inquiry.
- The petitions also demanded that the 7th respondent (Ernakulam Thirumala Devaswom) be handed the investigation and that the investigation proceed against alleged offenders in accordance with law.
- The court noted that the Crime Branch had already conducted an investigation and filed a UN (Undetected) Report on 13 January 2021 before the Chief Judicial Magistrate Court, Ernakulam.
Final Outcome
- The court granted the petitioners liberty to challenge the UN Report in accordance with law.
- No order was made to constitute a Special Investigating Team or to transfer the case to the CBI.
- Both writ petitions were closed, effectively dismissing the request for a CBI investigation.
Topics: Temple Theft, Court Proceedings