PALAKKAD: The family of tribal youth Madhu, whose brutal lynching in Attappady shocked Kerala and the country, broke down with mixed emotions after the Kerala High Court enhanced the sentence of 12 convicts to life imprisonment in the mob murder case on Monday.
While expressing relief and happiness over the tougher punishment, Madhu’s mother Malli and his elder sister Sarasu said they were deeply disappointed by the acquittal of first accused Hussein and would move an appeal against the decision.
“We are happy with the judgment. Many people stood with us during this fight. Alone, I could never have carried this forward,” Malli told reporters, her voice trembling with emotion.
She thanked all those who supported the family, including the government, for standing by them through the long legal battle. “At the same time, we never expected the first accused to be let off. I don’t know why he was acquitted,” she said. Sarasu also said the family would continue the legal fight to challenge the acquittal.
The High Court enhanced the sentence awarded by the Mannarkkad trial court from seven years’ imprisonment to life imprisonment for 12 accused in the sensational Attappady mob-lynching case. The court was considering appeals filed both by the accused seeking acquittal and by the state government seeking enhancement of punishment.
The state had approached the High Court demanding stricter punishment following repeated requests from Madhu’s family, who maintained that the original sentence did not reflect the gravity of the crime.
Madhu, a mentally challenged tribal youth from Attappady, was attacked and humiliated by a mob in February 2018 after being accused of stealing food items. Images of the starving youth being tied up and assaulted had sparked outrage across the country and became a symbol of mob violence and social injustice faced by tribal communities.
HC’s OBSERVATIONS
Madhu’s death stands as a painful reminder of the continuing distance between constitutional ideals and lived reality of many among the most marginalised sections of society. The near-total collapse of eyewitness testimony is not a minor aspect.
What happened to Madhu was not an isolated aberration. It was the product of a social atmosphere in which a group of persons believed that they possessed the authority to apprehend, punish, and publicly humiliate a tribal man accused of stealing food from nearby shops.
The tribals of Attappadi are not a problem to be controlled or punished. They are citizens of this country, protected by Constitution, entitled to equal dignity under law, and deserving of the same compassion and humanity owed to every other person. Madhu’s death is a stark reminder of how far society still remains from realising that promise.
