HC adjourns appeal

The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court today adjourned without mentioning any date an appeal filed by a District Elementary Educational Officer, convicted in the 2004 Kumbakonam School fire tragedy that claimed the lives of 94 school children in 2004, seeking a direction to set aside the order of the trial court.
The appellant R Balaji, sought the direction on the ground that he was DEEO only for a brief period from March 1,2004 to June 30,2004,and was only fowarding the reports of the Lower grade staff to higher officials.
A Division Bench of Justice S.Manikumar and Justice V.S.Ravi adjourned the case without mentioning any date.

The appellant submitted that the trial court had acquitted him on the main charges including homicide amounting to murder read with IPC section 120(conspiracy).
The appellant, who was sentenced to five years of rigorous imprisonment and slapped a fine of Rs.10000,said he had paid the fine amount.
The trial judge did not take into consideration that he only forwarded the records,relating to the school, to the higher officials,and this fact had been admitted by the prosecution also, he said.
The prosecution failed to prove that he was hand in glove with the school management and forwarded the proposal to authorities, he contended.The trial court had convicted him on the ground that he failed to perform his duty as DEEO.Even if it was true,mere dereliction of duty could not result in fastening of criminal liability on him, he submitted.