Delhi: The Supreme Court questioned the defense in the POCSO case against actor Koottickal Jayachandran, asking how the medical report could be ignored. The court raised this concern while considering Jayachandran’s anticipatory bail plea, as the state government opposed his bail by submitting a medical report.
Jayachandran argued that the allegations against him stemmed from family disputes. However, the government countered this claim by pointing to the medical report. The state informed the Supreme Court that the child had detailed the abuse both in her statement to the Kozhikode Judicial Magistrate Court and to the doctor who treated her. The government questioned how the case could be merely a result of family issues when medical evidence indicated otherwise.
Following this, the Supreme Court asked how the abuse detailed in the medical report could be disregarded. The court postponed the case hearing to March 24 and extended interim protection from arrest for Jayachandran until then.
The Kozhikode Kasaba police had registered a POCSO case against Jayachandran, alleging that he sexually assaulted a four-year-old girl inside a house in the city limits on June 8 last year. The actor remained in hiding for seven months after the case was registered.
After his anticipatory bail plea was rejected by the High Court, he approached the Supreme Court. On January 27, the Supreme Court ruled that Jayachandran should not be arrested until his anticipatory bail plea was resolved. With the case set for hearing on March 24, the outcome will be crucial for the actor.
