Nejaru murder case: Accused Chowgale remanded in 14 days' judicial custody
Udupi: The Udupi Principal Civil and JMFC Court on Wednesday remanded in judicial custody for 14 days Praveen Chowgale, the man arrested for the murder of four members of a single family at Nejaru here.
The Udupi Police officers, who had presented Chowgale before court on November 15, took the accused into custody for a period of 14 days for further investigation, given the intensity of the case. While the court had instructed that the police present the accused again on November 28, the Udupi Police completed within a week's time the investigation related to the case, including crime scene investigation, witnesses, statements and identity of the accused.
Having completed the investigation, the officers decided that they no longer needed to keep Chowgale in custody and, therefore, presented him before court on Wednesday itself. The accused was brought to court under tight police security, led by Malpe Circle Inspector Manjunath, who was the investigating officer of the case.
Udupi Civil Court judge Deepa remanded Chowgale in judicial custody for 14 days, adding that the accused be presented before the court again on December 5.
The accused arrested was taken back to the Udupi District Prison at Hiriyadka, under heavy police security.
Senior Assistant Public Prosecutor H.M. Nadaf was present in court.
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No unannounced load shedding in Kerala, outages due to overload, says Minister
Palakkad (PTI): Kerala Electricity Minister K Krishnankutty on Saturday said there was no unannounced load shedding in the state, attributing recent power interruptions to temporary overload caused by high consumption.
Clarifying concerns raised from various parts of the state, the minister said the disruptions are not deliberate but occur when demand peaks, particularly between 10 pm and 11 pm.
"It is not being done intentionally. Power consumption has risen sharply, and when there is excessive and indiscriminate usage, the system experiences overload, leading to natural supply interruptions," he told reporters here.
His remarks come amid complaints that several areas have been witnessing frequent power cuts, often lasting around 15 minutes and occurring multiple times during the night.
Krishnankutty said the state's power demand has crossed 6,195 MW, putting pressure on the supply system. He added that around 70 per cent of Kerala's electricity is procured from outside, and existing power banking arrangements have been exhausted.
"We have approached the Regulatory Commission seeking permission to purchase more power. However, this will come at a higher cost," he said.
The minister said the government is trying to avoid increasing electricity tariffs and urged consumers to exercise restraint in usage to help manage the situation.
Responding to opposition criticism over the ruling LDF's earlier claims of a decade without power cuts, he said the current situation is not unique to Kerala.
A power crisis is emerging across the country, he said, and sarcastically asked the Opposition to take note of the role of natural factors in this.
Krishnankutty expressed confidence that the situation would improve within two days, while cautioning that long-term energy security would depend on enhancing in-state power generation.
He also warned that future generations could face serious challenges if adequate electricity production capacity is not developed within Kerala.
