Ernakulam: The Kerala High Court on Friday granted bail to Dr EA Ruvais, who stands charged with abetting the suicide of his girlfriend, Dr Shahana by allegedly making dowry demands.
The court granted bail with conditions and also clarified that Ruvais' bail would not affect the suspension decision.
Taking note that Ruvais has been in custody since December 7, 2023, Justice Gopinath P was of the considered opinion that the continued detention of the petitioner was not necessary for the investigation and that he could be granted bail.
Dr Shahana, who was a Postgraduate surgery student at Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram, died by suicide due to financial constraints faced by her family and their failure to meet the alleged demands for exorbitant dowry sought by Ruvais.
Ruwais was thereafter charged with the offences under Section 306 IPC ('Abetment of Suicide') and Section 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act ('Penalty for demanding dowry').
The High Court also observed that further custody is not necessary at this stage. The High Court also directed that the passport be presented to the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Police.
However, the High Court has also clarified in the order that bail is being granted at this stage.
"It is up to the medical college authorities to decide whether to continue Ruvaiz's suspension or not. They can make independent decisions. The High Court also clarified that the fact that Ruvais has been granted bail will not affect the decision of suspension," it added.
The Court had earlier granted anticipatory bail to the petitioner's father, who was also the second accused in the case.
The Indian Medical Association (IMA) earlier suspended Ruvais.
In a statement, the IMA said, "Dr Ruvais EA, a member of the Indian Medical Association, alleged to be involved in the abetment of suicide of a lady doctor pursuing her 2nd-year post-graduate training in surgery, has been arrested by the police under the dowry prohibition act and remanded to Judicial Custody." (ANI)
