Kochi: Citing a vigilance report that pointed out serious lapses in the police probe into the sensational Jisha murder, the defense lawyer in the case filed a petition in the court seeking to stop the trial proceedings in the case.
The 16-page report, submitted in January by vigilance director Jacob Thomas, questions the credibility of the probe by the special investigation team headed by ADGP Sandhya.
Jisha, a dalit law student, was found murdered in her house at Perumbavoor on April 28, 2016. Assam native Ameer ul-Islam, the sole accused in the case, was arrested in June.
Defense lawyer B.A. Aloor appealed to the court to check the vigilance report.
“The vigilance has raised serious doubts about the probe and even questioned whether Ameer was indeed the culprit,” Aloor said, adding that he will file a complaint with the chief justice and governor.
The report also stated that the probe conducted so far was not in the 'right direction' and there were serious lapses in scientific collection of evidence and that the proof would not stand legal scrutiny in court. However, the vigilance report was rejected by state police chief Loknath Behera.
The investigation team had submitted a 1,500-page charge sheet in the case. Police had conducted six scientific tests, collected 75 pieces of material evidence, 125 documents and taken statements of around 105 people.
(With inputs from PTI)