Kerala journalist death: Accused IAS officer granted bail

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IAS officer Sriram Venkitaraman was granted bail on Tuesday, only two days after he was sent to 14-days judicial custody in connection with a road accident which led to a journalist's death.

Venkitaraman was suspended on Monday for allegedly mowing down journalist KM Basheer last week. When the accident took place, Venkitaraman was returning from a party in an inebriated state. Even though Basheer was rushed to the hospital, he could not be saved. Basheer was the Chief of Trivandrum Bureau of Malayalam daily Siraj.

However, in a statement to the police, Venkitaraman claimed that the car was being driven by his friend when the accident took place. A case was registered under Section 279
(for reckless driving) and 304 (for culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Indian Penal Code. According to the police, Venkitaraman rammed his car into Basheer's bike and killed him in Thiruvananthapuram in the wee hours of Saturday.

The officer was arrested while he was undergoing treatment at a hospital. According to the journalists' fraternity, there were a few lapses in the police probe who also claimed that the police did not do a blood test of the officer.

(with inputs from ANI)

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Edited by mid-day online desk with inputs from Agencies