Kochi: The High Court administrative committee Saturday issued memo of charges to former Ernakulam Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate N.V. Raju for procedural lapses in not recording the statement of solar scam accused Saritha S. Nair.
The panel has asked him to give an explanation on it within 15 days.
It was on July 20, 2013, the magistrate rejected a request of Saritha to record her statement when she was produced for hearing.
Earlier, the High Court vigilance wing had conducted a preliminary inquiry into the alleged lapses of Raju on a complaint.
The Vigilance Registrar in his report said the accused should have been given the required materials such as pen and paper to write down her statements.
The procedural lapses of the magistrate’s court, especially its decision not to record Saritha’s complaint after listening to her for nearly 20 minutes, had invited flak from various quarters.