The Court is no clog on investigation and prosecution is no lever for humiliation. Freedom of the individual is no licence to commit crime; personal liberty thus can have no conflict with public interest. The Court protects both interests and strikes a balance when there is clash. I repeat these - I stated the same in earlier proceedings - for, these statements have greater significance in the present controversy.

2. In the early hours on the 9th October, 1981, in the heart of this city, a shot rang in Majeendran's house. The bullet pierced his body. He was fatally injured. On the way to the hospital he died. About three years have elapsed : the investigation is still not over ! The police cannot be blamed, so says the Prosecutor. The influence and the ingenuity of the accused have protracted the investigation and the alleged main culprit, the 1st accused was absconding all these years. His whereabouts were not known and the police did not have any clue either. On 4-7-1984, he suddenly appears and surrenders before the Chief Judicial Magistrate. This event, of considerable significance for the investigation and possibly giving a twist to the further process of interroga