Murder charges dropped against Kerala IAS officer Sriram in journalist death case

In a big relief to IAS officer Sriram Venkitaraman, the Thiruvananthapuram Additional Sessions Court on Wednesday, October 19, dropped charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder against the officer and Wafa Firoz, the first and second accused in the death of journalist KM Basheer. Instead, they will be tried under Section 304a (death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code, advocate VA Hakeem told TNM. Basheer died on August 3, 2019 after a car driven by Sriram rammed into him.

Sriram and his passenger Wafa were initially booked under sections 304 (culpable homicide amounting to murder), 279 (rash driving on a public way) of the Indian Penal Code, and 184 (driving dangerously) of the Motor Vehicle Act. While punishment under 304 IPC would have included imprisonment for life or one that may extend to 10 years besides fine, 304a only constitutes a maximum punishment of imprisonment which may extend to two years with fine.

The court’s decision on a discharge plea filed by Sriram on September 19 indicates that the prosecution did not have strong evidence to implicate him for drunk driving and culpable homicide. The prosecution had argued in court that Sriram’s reckless driving under the influence of alcohol was what caused the accident. It also pointed out that Venkitaraman, who has studied medicine, had only allowed the police to collect his blood samples up to nine hours after the accident. He then got himself admitted to a private hospital, which the prosecution alleged led to the results of the test being botched up. His arrest was recorded only after around 17 hours.

The prosecution also alleged that based on the testimony of the witnesses, the IAS officer was drunk during the incident. Sriram’s counsel, meanwhile, has maintained that Basheer’s was an accidental death, pointing out that the blood sample test had not found any trace of alcohol. KM Basheer, the bureau chief of the Malayalam daily Siraj, had died on the spot after the car driven by Sriram crashed into his bike in Thiruvananthapuram.

Sriram was the Director of Survey and Land Records during the accident and was briefly suspended in 2019, but was back on duty later. He was reinstated in January 2020 and now holds the post of general manager of the State Civil Supplies Corporation Ltd in Ernakulam. Before he was transferred to Civil Supplies, Sriram was appointed as the Alappuzha District Collector, which invited huge flak for the government. Following this, the government revoked the order. Before he was appointed the Alappuzha District Collector, Sriram held the post of Joint Secretary of the Health and Family Welfare Department. His posting as Collector was objected to, as the job would require him to deal with the public on a daily basis and act on their grievances.