Thursday, March 16, 2017

TN court: Want bail? Cut down 100 karuvelam trees in 20 days

Ariyalur:


Bail will come at a price for this man accused of abusing and attacking a woman ­ the principal district judge of Ariyalur district granted the request of the accused on condition that he cut down 100 invasive `seemai karuvelam' (prosopis juliflora) trees within 20 days, K Rajendran, 45, accused of abusing and assaulting Rajeswari on March 2, had moved the Madurai bench of the Madras high court seeking anticipatory bail. Principal district judge AKA Rahmaan of the Ariyalur court, imposed this new condition even though counsel argued that the case was foisted against his client. Public prosecutor P Shan mugam opposed the bail petition but stated that the injured woman has since been discharged from hospital.

Considering the arguments of both sides, the judge decided to grant anticipatory bail if the petitioner cut down 100 karuvelam trees at Marungur village in 20 days. “That after his release, the petitioner shall remove 100 seemai karuvelam trees within 20 days in his Marungur village and shall obtain a certificate from the village administrative office (VAO) towards compliance and file the same before this court on the 21st day from the date of his release on bail, failing which the anticipatory bail granted to the petitioner shall be cancelled under the due process of law,“ the order copy reads.

Going further, the judge instructed that the bigger karuvelam trees be removed. “It is also made clear that the petitioner shall not make any namesake removal of small sized karuvelam trees,“ the order further stated. “It is also made clear that the petitioner shall not make any namesake removal of small sized karuvelam trees. They should all be large sized trees occupying considerable area. The petitioner shall enclose necessary photographs showing the trees had been removed. The copy of the order is directed to be sent to the tahsildar and the village administrative officer concerned for monitoring the process of removal of the trees,“ the or der further stated The judge also distributed pamphlets to people, using the opportunity to create awareness about the negative impact of seemai karuvelai on the environment.

In February 2017, a division bench of the Madras high court had passed a judgment to remove karuvelam in 13 districts in southern Tamil Nadu.

Following this order, state courts have been creating awareness among people about the hazards of karurvelam.

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