Kochi police on Monday registered a case against an Additional District Judge whose 17-year-old son allegedly drove his Mercedes-Benz into a scooter in Cheranalloor early on Sunday, killing the rider, after obtaining permission from the Kerala High Court to proceed against the judicial officer, IANS reported. The judge owns the car involved in the accident and is the father of the teenager accused of causing the death of Jayabalakrishnan, 55. Police are examining the judge's responsibility under the Motor Vehicles Act for allegedly allowing his minor son, who did not hold a driving licence, to use the vehicle.

Source: IANS

Police will also shortly move the Ernakulam District Sessions Court seeking cancellation of the teenager's bail, Nation Press reported. The latest developments followed a public backlash over the handling of the case, after the teenager was first released on station bail on Sunday evening and was then granted bail by the Juvenile Justice Board on Monday, following protests by the victim's family and local residents that led police to take him into custody again.

Source: Nation Press

The accident occurred around 2:20 a.m. on Sunday on Container Road at Cheranalloor, near Kochi, when the Mercedes-Benz allegedly driven by the teenager rammed into Jayabalakrishnan's scooter, and he died at the spot. Jayabalakrishnan, a native of Manjali, ran a small roadside eatery near Chittoor temple and was returning home after closing his shop for the night; his death has left his wife and three children without their principal breadwinner. According to police, the teenager was a regular driver and had taken the car out late at night to shoot a social media reel showing him driving at high speed, and investigators have recovered footage from his mobile phone showing the car travelling at high speed shortly before the accident. The teenager reportedly told investigators he had taken the car while his parents were asleep and lost control while trying to avoid a waterlogged stretch of road.

Source: IANS

55Age of Jayabalakrishnan, the scooter rider who died
2:20 a.m.Time of the crash on Sunday, Container Road, Cheranalloor
181 and 183Motor Vehicles Act sections invoked against the teenager
17Age of the accused driver, who held no licence

Police have invoked Sections 181 and 183 of the Motor Vehicles Act against the teenager for allegedly driving without a licence and overspeeding, and a culpable-homicide section was added to the case on Sunday as the probe widened. Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala directed urgent action after the initial station-bail release triggered public outrage. The Additional Director General of Police in charge of law and order has been asked to examine the alleged lapses, and a show-cause notice is to be issued to Kochi City Police Commissioner Kaliraj Mahesh Kumar. Jayabalakrishnan's daughter collapsed during a sit-in protest outside the police station and was taken to hospital; the family has demanded strict action against everyone found responsible.

Source: IANS

The Juvenile Justice Board's bail order earlier on Monday, and the protests that preceded it, were reported in our earlier story. Read: Juvenile board grants bail to teen in fatal Cheranalloor crash