TP Chandrasekharan murder: Kerala High Court upholds trial court conviction; additionally convicts two more

The Kerala High Court on Monday upheld the conviction of 12 persons for the 2012 murder of TP Chandrasekharan, a former member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] who founded the Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP), a breakaway of CPI(M). .The Court besides rejecting the appeals filed by the convicts (one of whom passed away during the pendency of the appeal) also additionally convicted two more persons who had been acquitted by the trial court.A division bench consisting of Justices AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and Kauser Edappagath passed the order and also issued non-bailable warrants against the two additionally convicted persons, KK Krishnan and Jyotibabu..The High Court ruled that Krishnan and Jyotibabu are also guilty of the offences under Section 120B (criminal conspiracy) read with Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code. ."We confirm the judgment of the trial court and sustain the conviction of A1 to A8, A11 and A13 (A1 – Anoop, A2 - Manoj @ Kirmani Manoj, A3 – N.K.Sunil Kumar @ Kodi Suni, A4 – T.K.Rajeesh, A5 – K.K.Muhammed Shafi, A6 – S.Sijith, A7 – K.Shinoj, A8 – K.C.Ramachandran, A11 – Manojan & A13 - Kunhanandan) in respect of the charges proved against them. We note that A13 expired during the pendency of these appeals, and his legal representative was impleaded. Additionally, we convict A1 to A5 and A7 under Section 120B of the IPC as well. We set aside the acquittal of A10 [K.K.Krishnan] and A12 [Geothi Babu] and convict them under Section 120B read with 302 of the IPC. We confirm the acquittal of the other accused," the judgment stated. .While passing the judgment, the bench further quoted Amartya Sen to criticise political violence:"Democracy thrives on the peaceful exchange of ideas, not the violent imposition of beliefs. Political violence is the poison that corrodes the roots of democratic principles.".The Court has ordered all the convicts to be produced before the Court on February 26 to hear them on the question of sentence. .Chandrasekharan was murdered near Onchiyam in Kozhikode district.The prosecution’s case was that the assailants were hired by certain CPI(M) functionaries to eliminate Chandrasekharan who posed a challenge to the party's influence in the area..A trial court convicted 12 of the 36 persons accused on May 4, 2012. However, the trial court also acquitted several persons accused, including prominent CPI(M) activists like Kozhikode district secretariat member P Mohanan as well as area and local committee members KK Krishnan and Jyotibabu.The 12 persons convicted were sentenced to life imprisonment by the special court. The verdict was challenged by the convicted persons before the High Court.The convicted individuals claimed innocence and alleged that false evidence was cited against them. They argued that the investigation against them was biased. One among the 12 convicts died during the pendency of the appeal..The High Court also heard appeals by both the State government and KK Rema, the wife of the slain leader. The State and KK Rema challenged the punishment awarded to the convicts by the trial court as well as the decision to acquit some of the accused.The State sought to enhance the life sentences of the convicts to the death penalty, arguing that the trial court had failed to recognize the severity of the meticulously planned murder. Rema contested the acquittal of several CPI(M) leaders and others accused, asserting that they had orchestrated the murder using professional criminals and should have received maximum punishment along with compensation for the victim's death..[Read Judgment]