Thiruvananthapuram: IAS officer Sriram Venkitaraman moved the Supreme Court seeking redemption of the charges of culpable homicide upheld by the Kerala High Court in connection with the death of journalist KM Basheer in a fatal accident.
KM Basheer was rammed over by the car driven by Venkitaraman allegedly under the influence of alcohol. However, Venkitaraman contested that there is insufficient evidence to support the imposition of murder charges.
Earlier, the Thiruvananthapuram Additional Sessions Court had dropped charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder against Venkitaraman and the second accused, Wafa Firoz. Instead, they were to be tried under Section 304a (death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code.
However, on April 13, the High Court overturned this decision, stating that they would be tried under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and Section 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of the commission of an offense) of the IPC.
The incident occurred on August 3, 2019, when Venkitaraman, then the Director of Survey and Land Records, and his friend Wafa were travelling in a car that collided with journalist KM Basheer, resulting in his death.
Venkitaraman was briefly suspended following the accident but was reinstated in January 2020. However, his subsequent posting as the Alappuzha District Collector in August 2022 faced widespread criticism, leading to its revocation. Currently, he is serving as the General Manager of the State Civil Supplies Corporation Ltd in Ernakulam.
The lower court had dismissed charges against Venkitaraman about drunk driving and culpable homicide, citing insufficient evidence. The prosecution argued that Venkitaraman's reckless driving under the influence of alcohol caused the accident.
However, they highlighted that Venkitaraman, a medical graduate, allowed the police to collect his blood samples nearly nine hours after the incident. Subsequently, he admitted himself to a private hospital, raising concerns about the accuracy of the test results. Venkitaraman was arrested approximately 17 hours after the incident occurred.