HC to form special bench to hear matters related to Hema Committee report

The Kerala High Court on Thursday said it will constitute a five-judge special bench to hear cases related to the Justice Hema Committee report. A bench of Acting Chief Justice A Muhamed Mustaque and Justice S Manu made this oral observation while hearing a plea challenging a single judge's decision allowing release of the committee's report. The special bench would also comprise women judges, the High Court said in its oral observation, a lawyer associated with the petition said. The single judge on August 13 had allowed release of the report by dismissing a plea challenging the State Information Commission's order permitting the panel's findings and recommendations to be made public. The single judge order came while rejecting the plea by Sajimon Parayil, a film producer, who had challenged the Information Commission's July 5 order directing the State Public Information Officer (SPIO) to reasonably disseminate the information in the report while ensuring that it does not compromi