New Delhi: In a counter affidavit filed at the Supreme Court, the Kerala government asserted that the proposal for the reexamination of the witness Manju Warrier was made to prove the links of Dileep in the 2017 actress assault case. The state government accused Dileep of attempting to hinder the prosecution from producing evidence against him. Severe allegations were also raised against the fifteenth accused Sarath in the affidavit.
Dileep alleged that the prosecution has been demanding a reexamination of Manju Warrier only to fill the evidence gaps. The reasons cited for proposing Manju Warrier’s reexamination are fake, accused Dileep. However, the prosecution dismissed the allegations and justified the request for conducting the reexaminations of four witnesses, including Manju Warrier.
The four witnesses must be reexamined to prove the tempering of digital evidence and voice recording in the case, read the affidavit.
Though the cross-examinations of the defence lawyers will also take place, the state government expects to wind up the trial within 30 working days. The Supreme Court had clarified multiple times that the speedy trial is the right of both complainants and accused. However, this could not impede the prosecution from producing evidence against the accused, observed the state government in the affidavit.
Dileep had alleged that the cross-examination of Kavya Madhavan’s father and mother had been proposed only to delay the proceedings. The state government rebuked these allegations. The counter affidavit has been filed on account of the Supreme Court’s decision to consider Dileep’s petition against the delay in trial on Friday.