Date:02/10/2005 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2005/10/02/stories/2005100205600500.htm

Kerala - Alappuzha

Binish remanded to judicial custody

Staff Reporter

Special Investigation Team's plea to get all the three arrested in police custody

BEFORE LAW: K.M. Binish, managing partner of the Himalaya Group of companies, being brought to the First Class Judicial Magistrate Court in Alappuzha on Saturday, in connection with the Kanichukulangara fake accident case. Photo: Johney Thomas

ALAPPUZHA: The Alappuzha Judicial First Class Magistrate S. Sreeraj on Saturday remanded K.M. Binish, an accused in the Kanichukulangara fake accident case, to judicial custody till October 14.

The Magistrate also remanded K.M. Gokul and Daniel, brother and driver of Gokul who were arrested by the Chittur police from Thampanpathy near Anamala in Tamil Nadu on Friday, to judicial custody till October 14. Binish is one of the managing directors of the Himalaya Group of companies and Gokul is the director of the company.

The accused were produced before the Magistrate at 4.20 p.m. Though the Special Investigation Team of the police headed by Deputy Superintendent of Police P.A. Johnson filed a request in the court to send the accused in police custody for 10 days, advocates of the three arrested opposed it. They asked time till Monday to study the police report filed in the court requesting police custody.

Following this, the Magistrate postponed the hearing to Monday. The Magistrate asked the accused whether the police harassed them and the accused replied that there was no such incident. The accused looked cool. A large number of people had assembled on the court premises to see the accused.

Meanwhile, the police said Binish had confessed to his part in the conspiracy. Gokul and Daniel did not seem to have any role in the conspiracy, the police said. The police arrested them for harbouring the accused. According to the police, Binish said it was N.S. Sajith, the other managing director of the Himalaya Group, who was the chief architect of the conspiracy. Binish told the police that he and Sajith had developed differences of opinion while in hiding. When he wanted to surrender before the police, Sajith opposed it.

The police released Saritha, wife of Gokul, as there was no case against her. But Manjusha, wife of Binish, still continues in police custody.