Cheruthoni: The post-mortem of a farmer who died in a vehicle mishap got delayed by a day following a dispute between two police stations in Idukki over their jurisdictional area.
An eyewitness said a cop who reached the accident site from the Idukki police station commented that since the border between the two stations couldn’t be determined, the accident site would have to be declared a Union Territory!
The police personnel of Idukki and Thankamani stations argued over the area after the man's body was found beside the Idukki-Kattappana road.
The body of Kuttappan (83) was kept in the mortuary of the Idukki Medical College overnight due to the dispute. He was killed in the accident on the road near his house at Chapra locality of Narakakkanam village around 11.30 am on Monday.
Though cops from the Idukki police station arrived at the spot, they didn’t conduct a body check or prepare an inquest.
The Sub-Inspector of the Idukki police station, who holds the charge of Station House Officer, asked Kuttappan's relatives to inform the matter to Thankamani police station.
However, the Thankamani police excused themselves, saying the Idukki police were supposed to act on the matter.
The dispute prolonged for hours together. Finally, the Idukki police held the inquest by 5 pm on Monday and filed the report.
The post-mortem was conducted on Tuesday morning, and the body was handed over to the relatives by noon. The funeral was held later in the day.
Kuttappan was a story writer and a familiar figure on All-India Radio's agricultural programme named ‘Kirshipadom’.
