Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has assured that his government will not allow anyone to scuttle the probe against IAS officer Sriram Venkitaraman, whose negligent driving allegedly under the influence of alcohol had killed journalist KM Basheer in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday.
“The State government will not allow anyone to scuttle the probe against Sriram,” he told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.
"Why did the police delay to collect Sriram's blood sample? Was there any high level infleunce to scuttle the probe? The investigation would explore all these questions," he said.
Pinarayai's statement is significant as doubts have been raised in the police investigation.
Sriram mowed down Basheer, who was riding a bike, in the early hours of Saturday. Basheer died on the spot and Sriram suffered injuries. Sriram's fellow passenger and car owner, Wafa Firoz, escaped unhurt.
The chief minister also criticised Sriram for the accident. “Initial reports said that he was under the influence of alcohol. Being an IAS officer, he must be aware of the legal implications of drunk driving. The probe will look into the allegations that Sriram took medicines to mask the alcohol content in his body.”
No stay on Sriram's bail
On Wednesday, the Kerala High Court denied stay on the bail granted to Sriram. It posted an appeal by the Kerala government to Friday. Venkitaraman was granted bail by a local court in Thiruvanathapuram on Tuesday.
The High Court slammed the Police for the inefficient way with which they carried out the investigation. It enquired about the absence of a CCTV camera in one of the major roads in Thiruvananthapuram, which is often used by the Governor.
The court also lashed at the Police for not taking the necessary steps to ensure that the evidence was not tampered with. The Police had collected Sriram's blood sample nine hours after the accident. The blood tests returned negative for alcohol content following which the court granted bail to Sriram.
The Kerala government has also requested Sriram's custody for further interogation in the case. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had earlier stated that the state would appeal against the bail granted.
