Kottayam: The Kerala police have dropped the murder attempt charge against a group of school students in connection with an incident in which a priest of a church in Poonjar near here was hit by a vehicle on the church property.
State Minister V N Vasavan today said a peace meeting was called by the district administration a few days ago in which the priests and the parents of the students and other political leaders took part and decided to settle the matter amicably.
The Minister said the meeting decided to take steps to ensure communal harmony.
"There were some serious charges against the students including section 307 (attempt to murder) of the IPC. After the meeting, decisions were taken to ensure bail for the children. Steps have been taken to make sure that they are allowed to write the final exam," Vasavan said.
He said the charge was dropped by the police after a detailed inquiry by the District Police Chief and has submitted a report in this regard to the concerned court.
The priest at St Mary’s Forane Church in Poonjar was injured after a vehicle driven by some boys knocked him down while he tried to stop them from racing within the grounds of the place of worship.
Police had impounded the cars and the bikes and arrested the boys. Cases were registered against 27 students from the Government Higher Secondary School in Erattupetta.
(Published 25 March 2024, 15:09 IST)
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