KOZHIKODE: The day to dawn hartal called by BJP activists here affected a 72-year-old man who came to Kozhikode on Thursday from Mumbai to attend a court trial. Meet Ramachandran Nair who himself had to address the court instead of his advocate, who could not attend the court to present the case for Ramachandran.
It was for a case involving the purchase of a flat that he bought in 2007 that Ramachandran was summoned for the trial in Kozhikode District court. Vehicles were off the road, shops and even government offices remained closed, but not the court. “The court wanted my presence on Thursday but inspite of a hartal being called in Kerala, it did not postpone the trial”, said Ramachandran.
“This was the worst day in my life, dealing with a case for which I am not responsible. The moment I got off the Netravathi Express and stepped out of the railway station at 10.30 am, I struggled to get a vehicle to reach the court. Later, when I contacted my advocate who resides in Perambra, he told me of his difficulty in reaching the court. Due to this I was made to read the case statement before the court,” he added. But the senior citizen is not going to let his ordeal go without a fight. “I am going to file a writ petition in the High Court pointing out the conditions that I faced on this hartal day.”
