Kerala High Court suspends Family Court judge following allegations of sexual misbehaviour

The Kerala High Court has suspended former Family Court Judge V. Udayakumar, against whom allegations of sexual misconduct were raised by a few women complainants of the court in Chavara, Kollam.

The court decided to suspend the officer from service in “public interest,” read the order issued by the Registrar (District Judiciary) on Wednesday.

The decision to suspend the officer was taken after a meeting of the Administrative Committee of the court. The committee has Chief Justice Nithin Jamdar and Justice A. Muhamed Mustaque and Justice A. K. Jayasankaran Nambiar, the two senior judges of the court, as its members.

The committee felt that the allegations raised against the officer were of a grave nature and amounted to serious misbehaviour on the part of the judge. The Hindu had earlier reported that the court was contemplating action against the officer following the allegations.

Of the three women who approached the Principal District Judge, Kollam with complaints of “serious and most inappropriate” behaviour on the part of the officer, two preferred written complaints. The Administrative Committee also took into consideration the report of the Registrar (District Judiciary) and the Principal District Judge before initiating the disciplinary proceedings, sources said.

The alleged incidents reportedly took place inside the chamber of the judge in the court complex in Chavara.

Transferred

The Registrar had earlier transferred him to another post following the complaints. The court will decide on the disciplinary action against the official after an inquiry by a High Court judge.

Charges will be framed against the officer on the basis of the inquiry report. No legal action can be initiated against the officer unless the complainants approach the police, judicial sources maintained.

The High Court has also decided to step up supervision of judicial officers in the wake of the allegations of sexual misbehaviour. This is the second such allegation to be raised against a judicial officer of the State within the last six months.