Posted By :  Admin1

Dr. EA Ruvais, facing charges of abetting the suicide of his girlfriend Dr. Shahana by purportedly making dowry demands, has been allowed by the Kerala High Court to resume his postgraduate medical course. Justice A Mohammed Nias CP expressed concern that barring Ruvais from finishing his studies could inflict irreversible harm on him. Consequently, the Court issued an interim order instructing the medical college to allow him to resume his studies. The Court emphasized that even convicts possess certain fundamental rights despite being found guilty, and highlighted the presumption of innocence for an accused individual. Considering the petitioner's merit and the potential irreversible harm if he's barred from continuing his studies, the Court issued an interim order instructing the respondents to allow the petitioner to immediately rejoin the course. This directive includes suspending the operation of Ext.P1 (suspension order) and halting all further proceedings, including the order dated March 2, 2024. The respondents are required to take necessary precautions to prevent any untoward incidents in the college due to the petitioner's return to the course. Orders regarding this matter must be issued within a week from the date of this directive. In late 2023, Dr. Shahana, a postgraduate surgery student at Government Medical College in Thiruvananthapuram, tragically took her own life, reportedly due to her family's inability to meet the dowry demands made by Ruvais. Allegedly, Ruvais' family sought 150 sovereigns of gold, 15 acres of land, and a BMW car from Shahana's family, requests they were unable to fulfill. Consequently, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) suspended Ruvais' medical license, and he was subsequently arrested by the police. He faced charges under Section 306 (abetment of suicide) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act. On December 22, 2023, the High Court granted him bail, deeming his continued incarceration unnecessary for the ongoing investigation. Nonetheless, his arrest led to his suspension from the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College, where he was pursuing his MS (Master of Surgery) Orthopaedics degree. Consequently, he petitioned the High Court seeking permission to resume his studies. Following an interim court order in February, the medical college authorities initially rejected Ruvais' request to resume his studies. However, the Court expressed concern that keeping him away from his postgraduate course pending investigation or trial could irreparably harm him if the charges are proven false. Consequently, the Court directed the college authorities to immediately permit him to rejoin the course and suspended the operation of the suspension order against him. Final orders on the matter are expected to be issued next week. Ruvais was represented by Senior Advocate CC Thomas and advocates MG Karthikeyan and Nireesh Mathew. The State authorities were represented by Government Pleader PG Pramod.