Kerala actor assault case: Another HC judge recuses from memory card leak hearing

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Petition by the survivor in the case seeks to quash the Ernakulam District and Sessions Judge’s inquiry report into the alleged unauthorised access to a memory card, a key piece of evidence which contained the videos of the crime. | Photo Credit: R.K. Nithin

A single judge of Kerala High Court on Wednesday (June 10, 2026) recused himself from considering the petition filed by the survivor in the Kerala actor rape case, seeking to quash the Ernakulam District and Sessions Judge’s inquiry report into the alleged unauthorised access to the memory card, a key piece of evidence which contained the videos of the crime.

Justice Kauser Edappagath sought the recusal when the matter was considered on the day.

Earlier, Justice Jobin Sebastian had recused himself, reasoning that he had served as the Registrar of the District Judiciary when the survivor submitted an administrative complaint regarding the illegal access to the memory card while in judicial custody during trial court proceedings.

Justice Edappagath has not stated any reasons for his recusal.

The survivor’s plea seeks a probe by a special investigation team (SIT) into the alleged leak, to involve a cyber/digital forensics expert in the SIT, an independent scientific analysis regarding the possibility of transfer and transmission of the contents from the memory card, and orders for a fair and comprehensive investigation into the disputed inquiry report.

The report had revealed that the memory card was accessed thrice while in judicial custody, without any authorisation.