KOCHI: Tightening the noose on repeat offenders, the Ernakulam range police have detained 75 people under the Kerala Anti-Social Activities Prevention Act (KAAPA) and lodged them in various jails in the first eight months of 2025.
As many as 37 offenders from Alappuzha, 26 from Ernakulam Rural, 11 from Kottayam, and one from Idukki were jailed in the crackdown led by Range DIG S Satheesh Bino.
Among them was Rithu Jayan, an accused in the Chendamangalam mass murder case, in which three members of a family, including two women, were brutally killed, said a source with Ernakulam range.
In addition, 91 people were exiled from their districts for periods ranging from six months to a year, with DIG Bino warning that violations of the ban will result in imprisonment without bail, said the officer.
“Authorities also directed 133 offenders to report weekly before station house officers, while 2,961 repeat offenders were bound over to maintain good conduct and kept under close watch,” the officer added.
“Invoking KAAPA and following it up with detention and deportation reflects our commitment to enforcing law and order. Strict action will continue against repeat offenders and those who pose a threat to public peace,” he said, stressing that the drive should be seen as a collective policing effort rather than in comparison with previous years.
A top source with Ernakulam Rural added that offenders linked to narcotics cases were also targeted under KAAPA. “Nineteen offenders linked to narcotics cases have also been detained under preventive custody. Among them is Swathi Krishna, a young woman from Ernakulam Rural, booked under the NDPS Act,” the officer said.