KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Monday upheld the life imprisonment awarded to the convicts including CPM leaders in a case related to the murder of Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP) leader T P Chandrasekharan at Onchiyam, Kozhikode, on May 4, 2012.
A Division Bench comprising Justice AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice Kauser Edappagath confirmed the life imprisonment awarded to accused number 1 to 7-- M C Anoop, Manoj Kumar alias Kirmani Manoj, N K Sunil Kumar alias Kodi Suni, Rajeesh Thundikandi, K K Mohammed Shafi, Sijith alias Annan Sijith, and K Shinoj, and KC Ramachandran, the eighth accused, then CPM Kunnummakkara local committee member, Manojan alias Trouser Manojan, the 11th accused, former CPM Kadungapoyil branch secretary, and late P K Kunhanandan, the 13th accused and former CPM Panoor area committee member.
The Bench also set aside the order acquitting the tenth accused KK Krishnan, former CPM area committee member, Onchiyam, and the 12th accused Geothi Babu, and convicted them under section 120 B (Criminal Conspiracy). Further, the court confirmed the acquittal of 22 accused including CPM leader P Mohanan Master.
The court directed the Jail Superintendent Kannur and Thavanoor to produce A1 to A8 and A11 in person before the high court at 10.15 am on February 26 for hearing A1 to A5 and A7 on the sentence being imposed under section 120 B of IPC and all of them--A1 to A8 and A11 on the plea of enhancement of sentence and compensation.
The court also called for the report in respect of A1 to A8 and A11 for effectively considering the plea of enhancement of their sentence. It includes the report from the jail superintendents about the nature of the work done by the accused persons while in jail. Another report regarding Psychological and psychiatric evaluation in respect of A1 to A8 and A11 from the government medical college or government hospital.
The convicts had argued that the case against them was a falsely foisted one and they were convicted based on false evidence and witness statements. The investigation headed by an additional DGP of the crime branch hid the facts and probed the case in a premeditated manner. Evidence required for the case was falsely created, they have alleged.
The Special Court Additional Sessions Court, Kozhikode had sentenced M C Anoop, Manoj Kumar alias Kirmani Manoj, N K Sunil Kumar alias Kodi Suni, Rajeesh Thundikandi, K K Mohammed Shafi, Sijith alias Annan Sijith, and K Shinoj to life imprisonment and slapped them with a fine of Rs 50,000 each. They were found guilty under IPC Sections 302 (murder), 143 (unlawful assembly), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon) and 149 (unlawful assembly).
KC Ramachandran, Manojan alias Trouser Manojan, and late P K Kunhanandan who were found guilty under IPC Section 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 302 (murder), were awarded life imprisonment and a fine of Rs 1 lakh each.
According to the state government, the trial court failed to appreciate the evidence in its true perspective while awarding sentences to those accused found guilty of the offences charged against them. The court failed to appreciate the fact that the gruesome murder was a pre-planned, cold-blooded, and dastardly one.
Chandrasekharan's wife K K Rema also approached the court seeking maximum punishment to the accused. She stated that the accused persons who faced trial were murdered in a preplanned brutal manner by engaging professional criminals and after making several attempts. Hence, the trial court ought to have granted maximum punishment, including capital punishment to the accused and also awarded heavy compensation to the victim.
The allegations against the accused in the final report that T.P. Chandrasekharan was an active member of the CPM and he was a local leader. Along with some others, he left the party and formed a new party called 'Revolutionary MarxistParty'(R.M.P). The new political party raised a strong challenge to the CPM in Onchiyam, Chorode, Azhiyoor, and Eramala Panchayats. T.P. Chandrasekharan was a candidate in the Vadakara constituency in the Lok Sabha election. The CPM candidate who contested the election in that constituency was defeated not by T.P.Chandrasekharan but by the Congress candidate. The defeat of the CPM candidate at the Vadakara constituency in the Lok Sabha election, presumably due to the presence of T.P. Chandrasekharan as a candidate in the election, intensely inflamed the animosity and rivalry between the two political parties. A criminal conspiracy was then hatched to murder Chandrasekharan. During September and October 2009 attempts were made to murder him. In February 2012 clashes occurred at various places between the activists of CPM and R.M.P.
On 2.4.2012, again a conspiracy was made by the accused at the flower shop of 30th accused MK Raveendran to assassinate T.P. Chandrasekharan, and the task of executing the plan was entrusted to 8th accused KC Ramachandran.
On May 4, 2012, accused--1 to 7-- Anoop, Kirmani Manoj, Kodi Suni, Rajeesh Thundikkandi, Muhammed Shafi, Sijith, and Shinoj respectively in an Innova car driven by Anoop, reached Vallikad. The real registration number of that car was KL-58D-8144 but the fake number KL-18A-5964 was exhibited on it. T.P. Chandrasekharan was then coming on a bike. The first accused Anoop rammed the car into the bike, throwing Chandrasekharan to the road. Immediately, accused 2 to 7 got out of the car and attacked him with swords and hacked him to death and Kodi Suni exploded a country-made bomb to scare away onlookers from reaching the spot. After accomplishing the task assigned, the assassins left the place in the car. The other accused in the case had in one way or another assisted in executing the murder, the conspirators, harboring them and obliterating the evidence of the crime.
The Ninth accused CH Asokan died during the period of the trial of the case. Kunhananthan died in June 2020 when the appeal was pending in the High Court. A total of 36 accused persons faced the trial before the Special Court and 24 including P Mohanan were acquitted.
The Special Court had observed that the murder in this case was cold-blooded, pre-planned, and brutal. The motive of the crime was not any personal enmity. The action of the accused not only was inhuman but ruthless and barbaric.