Kovai kids case: Plea for fresh trial rejected

COIMBATORE: Setting the stage for a speedy trial in the sensational Muskan-Rithik siblings’ murder case, a court here on Monday dismissed a petition from the lone surviving accused seeking a fresh trail in the case.While cross-examination of 42 out of the 45 crucial witnesses was already completed, the accused R Manoharan had sought a fresh trial in the case. He alleged that his previous counsel, who was appointed by the Legal Aid Cell, had sided with the prosecution and did not adduce sufficient arguments on his behalf during the trial.Dismissing the petition, Mahila Court judge M P Subramaniam observed that there was no merit in the petition. Manoharan’s counsel had sought a retrial under CrPC Section 326.However, the judge, in his order, noted that a re-trial could be ordered under the said section only if the case had been transferred from one court to another. The case was tried earlier by the additional district judge Seshasayee. Now, the judge appointed for the Mahila Court was handling the case. In practical terms, the case was not transferred from one court to another.