VIPIN DAS Vs. STATION HOUSE OFFICER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The prayers in the afore captioned Writ Petition (Criminal) seeking for Habeas Corpus are as follows:

(2.) Heard Sri.K.B.Arunkumar, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner, Sri.E.C.Bineesh, learned Prosecutor appearing for official respondent No.1 and Sri.P.K.Sajeevan, learned counsel appearing for contesting respondents 2 to 4.

(3.) The case set up in the above Writ Petition (Criminal) is to the effect that the petitioner had married the daughter of R-2 & R-3 (who is also the sister of R-4) on 14/12/2016. A girl child viz. 'Vaishnavi Vipin' was born to the above couple on 28/11/2018, as evident from Ext.P-1 Birth Certificate. The petitioner's parents have been settled in Gujarat for a very long time. The petitioner's father passed away some time back. The petitioner, now aged 38 years, is working as Principal Software Engineer in a Bangalore based company in Gujarat. The child has been studying in Pre-Kindergarden Nursery sec. in Vijayaben Mohanbhai English Medium School, Halol, Panchmahal, Gujarat, which is said to be a well reputed school providing schooling up to 12th Standard and various other extracurricular activities. The petitioner's sister, aged 35 years, is also settled in Gujarat along with her husband and child and it is about 3 hours journey from the petitioner's residence. Further, it was found, some time in April, 2020 or so, that the petitioner's wife 'Juny' was suffering from cancer ailments and she was given medical treatment in Gujarat itself, as evident from Ext.P-2 series of documents. Respondents 2 & 3 (the parents of the petitioner's wife) requested that the petitioner's wife should be given treatment at the Regional Cancer Centre, Thiruvananthapuram (RCC). According to the petitioner, he could not immediately leave Gujarat because of his employment responsibilities and as he had to settle some of the loans taken for expending money for his wife's treatment. That, accordingly, respondents 2 & 3 had gone to Gujarat and had taken the petitioner's wife and child to Kerala, for giving treatment to the petitioner's wife at RCC, Thiruvananthapuram on 25/9/2022. Thereafter, the petitioner was not made aware about the subsequent developments regarding the medical treatment. The petitioner was thus constrained to come down to Kerala on 30/9/2022 to know about his wife's treatment and R-2 to R-4 were behaving to the petitioner in a very indifferent manner. Thereafter, with great difficulty, the petitioner could meet his wife, some time in the first week of October, 2022 and she was discharged from the Hospital at Thiruvananthapuram on 8/10/2022. The petitioner had then taken his wife for further treatment at Apollo Hospital, Karukutty, Ernakulam district. Later, on 9/10/2022 she was shifted to another hospital at Ottapalam, Palakkad district, which is near to the residence of R-2 to R-4. On 10/10/2022, the petitioner's wife 'Juny' had breathed her last. Ext.P-3 is the Death Certificate in that regard. Further that, R-2 to R-4 were thereafter not permitting the petitioner to have access to the child despite various requests. The petitioner was thus constrained to give various representations and complaints before the SHO, Ottapalam and SHO, Shornur. Ext.P-4 is one such petition filed before the SHO, Ottapalam, within whose jurisdiction R-2 to R-4 had confined the child in their residence. It is in the light of these averments that the petitioner had filed the instant Writ Petition with the afore mentioned prayers.