CHENNAI: The Special Court for NIA Cases in Poonamallee on Friday sentenced four cadres of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI) to life imprisonment for the 2016 murder of Hindu Munnani spokesperson C Sasikumar in Coimbatore. The four persons — Sadam Hussain, Subair, Mubarak and Mohammad Rafiqul Hassan — were each sentenced to life imprisonment and fined Rs 30,000.
This is the first conviction secured by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in a case involving PFI operatives since the organisation was banned by the centre, the agency said.
Sasikumar was hacked to death in Coimbatore on September 22, 2016. According to NIA, the killing was carried out as part of a conspiracy to strike terror among a section of society and trigger communal unrest.
The incident was followed by violence in places including Coimbatore city and rural, with over 300 FIRs registered by the state police.
The case was initially registered at Thudiyalur police station in Coimbatore and later investigated by the CB-CID. Following an order of the centre on January 22, 2018, the case was transferred to the NIA and re-registered. The NIA probe found that the accused, identified as active PFI members, had allegedly entered into a criminal conspiracy and carried out the killing. The agency filed a chargesheet and two supplementary chargesheets against five accused.
The trial began in 2019, with 75 prosecution witnesses and two defence witnesses being examined. The four were convicted under Sections 302, 120-B and 153-A of the IPC and Sections 16, 18 and 20 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The court acquitted the fifth accused, Abu alias Syed Abuthagir. The NIA said it is examining the judgment and exploring legal options to challenge the acquittal before the appellate court.