Unbearable stench forces judges to stop sitting; civet urinates at Kerala High Court; python caught from old complex

KOCHI: Cases were suspended in the High Court's bench due to a civet situation. The division bench comprising Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji adjourned the sitting after considering only urgent petitions. The judges left after instructing the staff to clean the court hall and the ceiling properly.

The sitting was suspended due to the stench of urine in the area where the lawyers are sitting in the court hall. It was also clear that the stench was coming from the ceiling and the AC ducts. The sitting will continue as usual tomorrow after the hall is cleaned.

The Chief Justice's bench was to hear a petition seeking legislation to regulate witchcraft and sorcery today. The civet, which was caught using a trap in the court hall on Monday night, was handed over to the forest department.

The civet was found in the air conditioning duct on the ceiling of the court hall. The location of the civet was revealed after it was captured on CCTV. The proximity of the Mangalavanam Bird Sanctuary to the High Court complex is also believed to be the reason for the presence of civets.

A python was also found in the premises of the old High Court building, Rammohan Palace. The forest department and Karma Sena captured and released it into the forest. Rammohan Palace is adjacent to the new High Court building, where hearings had to be stopped due to the civet nuisance.