THALASSERY: All the 25 CPM workers who faced trial in the sensational case of attempt to murder former Co-operation Minister M V Raghavan were acquitted by Assistant Sessions Judge A Haris on Friday.
The judgment letting off the CPM workers, including district secretariat member and Desabhimani Kannur unit manager M Surendran and area secretary Panoli Valsan, was delivered as a restless crowd of political workers gathered outside the court.
The total number of accused in the case was 94, but only 25 faced trial.
CPM state committee member M V Jayarajan did not turn up for the trial.
Five of the accused -- K K Rajeevan, K V Roshan, V Madhu, C Babu and Shibulal -- were killed in the police firing at Koothuparamba. Another accused, Pushpan, was bed-ridden for life following the injuries he sustained in the firing.
The prosecution case was that the accused had gathered at Koothuparamba in an attempt to murder Raghavan, then a minister, on November 25, 1994.
Raghavan had gone to Koothuparamba to inaugurate an evening branch of the Koothuparamba Service Co-operative Bank when the accused, supported by a crowd of about 3,000 CPM workers, allegedly attempted to kill him.
The attempt was made by them after breaking the police cordon, according to the prosecution.
There was jubilation in the CPM circles following the court verdict.
Meanwhile, a private case filed by relatives of the five youths killed in the police firing is yet to come up for hearing at the Sessions Court. M V Raghavan and police officials, including then ASP Ravatha Chadrasekhar and DySP Hakkim Bathery, were the accused in the case.
Appeal, MVR tells govt
Raghavan said Friday’s judgment was not surprising. The accused in the case “managed to secure a favourable verdict by influencing witnesses,” making use of political power -- the “latest such incident of threatening.” Since it is a case of attempt to murder a minister filed by the government, the latter should file an appeal, Raghavan demanded.
