The Madurai Bench of the Madras HC had earlier initiated suo moto contempt proceedings against Swathi for changing her witness statement.
Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court, on Friday, January 6, has framed charges against Swathi – the prime witness in Gokulraj caste murder case – after criminal contempt proceedings were initiated against her. The court had earlier initiated suo moto contempt proceedings for changing her witness statement and turning hostile. A bench of justices MS Ramesh and N Anand Venkatesh framed the charges, and a copy of the charge memo was handed over to Swathi’s husband, who was present on her behalf since she is pregnant.
In June 2015, Gokulraj – a Dalit youth from Tamil Nadu’s Namakkal was abducted and murdered. Later, Yuvraj, the founder of caste outfit Maveeran Theeran Chinnamalai Gounder Peravai, and nine others were found guilty of the murder. The convicts murdered Gokulraj after he was seen visiting a temple with his classmate Swathi, a woman from the Gounder caste. While Swathi initially gave a witness statement in the case, she later turned hostile in court and refused to recall what happened at the temple.
Read: The murder which shook Tamil Nadu: Gokulraj’s death to Yuvaraj’s surrender, all you need to know
Last November, Swathi was asked to reappear before the court as the justices questioned how a ‘star witness can turn hostile this way’. On November 25, she appeared before the Bench, and the CCTV footage from the temple showing Gokulraj and Swathi on the day of his abduction was played. However, Swathi said that the woman in the video was not her.
Observing that she did not respect her oath s a witness, the Bench warned her that the court would charge her with contempt. Following this, Swathi fainted and was taken to a hospital. On November 30, she reappeared at the court after the judges asked her if she wanted to make any changes to her statement. However, Swathi remained hostile.
Read: Prime witness in Dalit youth Gokulraj murder recalled by HC, continues to be hostile
“The witness Swathi did not reply properly. She is refusing to tell the truth. Seeing the CCTV footage, she recognised Gokulraj, but said she couldn’t identify the woman. But we can see that the woman in the CCTV footage is Swathi,” the court observed and added that while she was in distress, she did not disclose the reason behind the distress.
“Gokulraj was murdered because he met Swathi. Why should she change her witness statement? At least she could have stated the reason. Swathi, who is the star witness in the case, was given time, but she gave us the wrong information,” the court had said and ordered for criminal contempt proceedings to be initiated against her.
Read: Gokulraj’s murder: Dreams of youth crushed by arrogance of oppressor caste
Source: The News Minute