HC imposes cost of Rs 5000 each on petitioners

Dismissing petitions, the Madras High court today imposed a cost of Rs 5000 each on two petitioners who sought a direction to a lower court to release them on bail after they surrender in a criminal case against them under Prohibition of Employment of Manual Scavengers and Rehabilitation Act 2013.
Justice S.Vaidyanathan of the court's Madurai Bench said the act clearly stipulated that no person shall be permitted to employ either directly or indirectly any person for hazardous cleaning of sewer or septic tank.
Every offence under this act was cognizable and non-bailable, the judge said.
Two workers, Balakrishnan and Sankarthalayan, had died while cleaning the septic tank of a plastic factory,owned by one Sekar. Thirumoorthy, the other petitioner, owned the 'Septic tank cleaner lorry'.

The offences of the petitioners, as per the FIR, were grave, and had been registered under special enactment.There was no iota of doubt that the offence committed could be tried under the Act, the court said.
Therefore at this stage the court could not direct the trial court, Principal District and Sessions court at Karur to accept the surrender of the petitioners/accused and consider their bail pleas the same day on merit, the judge said.
If the petitioners surrendered, it was for the court to decide whether to release them on bail or not, the judge said.
The court then dismissed the petitions filed by R.Sekar and Thirumoorthy by imposing a cost of Rs.5000 each which, it said, should be paid to the family members of the deceased.