O R D E R

The petitioners in all these Transfer Petitions are the witnesses in three criminal cases, two cases pending before the Juvenile Justice Board, Idukki and one case pending before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, Thodupuzha.

2. The petitioners in Tr.P.(Crl) No. 11/19 are witnesses 1 and 4 in JST No.33/2018 on the file of the Juvenile Justice Board, Idukki. The petitioners in Tr.P.(Crl) No.12/19 are witness 1 to 3 in JST No.61/2017 on the file of the Juvenile Justice Board, Idukki. The petitioners in Tr.P.(Crl) No.21/2020 are witnesses 1 to 3 in C.C.No.1549/2017 on the file of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, Thodupuzha. The petitioners sought transfer of these cases on the ground that they face threat on the part of the accused. When the matters were taken up for hearing, both sides suggested that the examination of the petitioners may be conducted through video conferencing.

3. Rule 8(23) of the Electronic Video Linkage Rules for Court (Kerala), 2021 provides that when a Required Person is unable to reach the Court Point or the Remote Point due to sickness or physical infirmity or due to any genuine reason which the Court may decide, or the presence of th