Pedestrian death: Kerala HC raps Kochi Corpn. due to an alleged failure to restore trails in the city

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The Kerala High Court has slammed the Kochi Corporation for its alleged failure to restore footpaths following a private bus accident that resulted in the death of a 28-year-old woman in Kakkanad.

The court reviewed footage of the accident and found that the deceased had no space on the side of the road to avoid the oncoming bus.

The court asked orally what the guarantee is that a person without safe footpaths will get home safely. The court directed the District Superintendent of Police (Kochi City) to take strict action against speeding buses.

The measures taken by the authorities should create fear of the law, the court said. He noted that the bus drivers acted like “killing machines”. The court repeated the decision of the Supreme Court, which declared the right to footpaths as a fundamental right. Officials should bear full responsibility for violating such a sacred right, the court said. The police and other concerned authorities should have ensured traffic regulation at places where the road did not have a designated space for pedestrians, like the Kakkanad accident site, the court said. He added that “acting after an accident is only an afterthought. The will and determination to avoid it is essential.”

Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Arun K. Pavithran informed the court that the private bus driver responsible for the Kakkanad accident had several criminal cases against him, including one under the Narcotic and Psychotropic Substances Act. He informed the court that a ‘Smart ID’ system recording the details of the bus employees was being worked on and that information about 1,300 people had already been added. The officer informed the court that the police can access this data at any time through the QR code displayed on the employee IDs.

The court recalled that there was a telephone number used by road users to report reckless driving earlier. He ordered that the phone number must be displayed on all buses. In this regard, the DCP assured the court that display of telephone number can be part of the conditions of vehicle permit.

Published – 7 Nov 2026 07:00 IST