Journalism of Courage
Lawyers representing state transport driver Santosh Maruti Mane (39),whose murderous drive had killed eight persons and injured several others in the city on January 25,submitted Manes psychological treatment records before judicial magistrate (first class) Umeshchandra More and demanded that he should be shifted to the mental hospital to avoid any untoward incident in future.
Advocates M K Agarwal and Kashyap Khandagle said they took up Manes case after his family approached them. Despite opposition from Pune Bar Association (PBA),Agarwal had submitted his vakalatnama for Mane on Monday. The lawyers submitted in the court the documents related to his treatment done by Dr Dilip Burte,a Solapur-based psychiatrist.They also submitted his medicine prescriptions and other treatment-related papers from February 2010 to September 2011.
The lawyers submitted that Mane needs to take anti-psychotic medicines his entire life. They asserted that he needs psychiatric treatment and counselling that is not available in jail and so he should be shifted to the mental hospital. Lawyers said Mane is of unsound and abnormal behavior and keeping him in jail would aggravate his mental illness to such an extent that he would become incurable. The argument on this will take place on Monday.
Police had arrested Mane on charges of murder,attempt to murder,theft and other offences. Mane was initially remanded in police custody and following medical report from the Sassoon Hospital he was shifted to the mental hospital for observation.
The mental hospital had submitted to the court that during the observation period from January 28 to February 5,serial mental status examinations conducted by the panel of psychiatrists,facts communicated by the ward staff and psychometric evaluations are not sufficient to diagnose a major psychiatric illness at present. Mane was later sent to Yerawada jail under magisterial custody remand.
