THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Three of the accused in the radio jockey Rajesh murder case were in prison for five-and-a-half years without bail. Of them, two were convicted, while the third one, K Thanseer, who was listed as the fourth accused, was acquitted for want of evidence. Thanseer, a native of Karunagapally, was arrested when he was 22 years old.
Thanseer’s lawyer Omar Salim said though bail is the rule and jail is the exception, in Thanseer’s case that rule was violated. “Denying bail is a denial of natural justice. Thanseer had to spend a very long time in prison as a remand prisoner and that’s an unfortunate thing,” he said.
Thanseer, meanwhile, accused the police implicated him in the case. “There was a political case against me and my house was ransacked by an officer who was investigating it. I had filed a complaint against him. Out of vengeance, I was later arrested in this fabricated case, “ he said.
Thanseer was given interim bail twice for a total of 16 days under strict conditions. However, his pleas for regular bail were turned down after the prosecution vehemently objected to it. “I had to suffer many hardships and have lost about six good years of my life, but the lone silver lining is that I could prove my innocence,” Thanseer said.