KOCHI: The Kerala High Court harshly criticised BJP state general secretary Sobha Surendran on the plea filed by her against police excesses in Sabarimala. Rejecting her plea, the court imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 and asked her not to use the court for cheap publicity stunts. The court observed that the plea has made fraudulent allegations against the police. The court’s action should be a lesson to all. She lastly tendered an apology to the court.

She filed a public interest plea alleging that thousands of persons have been illegally arrested and detained by police in the state but no action has been taken against the erring officers as directed by the high court. Rejecting the allegations, the court observed that the plea was filed for fame. The court did not comply with the advocate’s stand that an apology would be tendered. The court imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 for wasting their time and asked to pay the amount to the Legal Service Society.

The plea had alleged that the police insulted a union minister and a high court judge in Sabarimala. Innocents are being arrested and sent to jail. It has been pointed by the petitioner that a Supreme Court judgement of 2014 (Gujarat vs kishanbhai, etc) stipulated that departmental action should be initiated against an investigating officer if the case he probed resulted in acquittal and it was due to lapse on the official’s part.