Triggering a political row, the left-front government in Kerala has decided to move the Supreme Court against an order of the Kerala High Court for CBI probe into the murder of two Youth Congress workers at Kasargod district in North Kerala in February 2019 in which CPI(M) local leaders and workers were the accused.
The CPI(M)-led government had already faced criticisms of spending public money of around Rs 85 lakh for hiring senior lawyers to oppose the plea of the families of the deceased, Kripesh and Sarathlal, for CBI probe as the accused were CPI(M) local leaders.
The Crime Branch that probed the case initially had arraigned 14 persons, including local leaders of the CPI(M), but concluded that personal rivalry led to the murder and it was not a political murder. A division bench of the CBI on August 25 ordered CBI probe. A single bench of the HC had also earlier ordered CBI probe pointing out lapses in the Crime Branch probe.
Even then the CBI had informed that they were unable to take over the probe as the Kerala police was not handing over the case diary and details citing the pending appeal.
Reacting to the fresh move of the left-front government to file an appeal in the SC, families of the deceased said the government was having no regard for the common people but was trying to protect party workers only. Sarathlal's father Sathyan said that he would fight to any extent to ensure deserving punishment to the culprits.
Congress senior leader and former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said that the left-front government had once again made it clear that the common people would not get any justice from the government. The government already spent Rs 88 lakh to hire senior lawyers for opposing plea for CBI probe and would spend more public money to protect murder case accused, he said.
Congress MP Rajmohan Unnithan, who represents Kasargod, said that it was almost certain that the CPI(M) would go to any extent to protect the murder accused party workers.
The state government's stand was that the Crime Branch probe had almost finished and the HC did not point out any specific flaws in the Crime Branch investigation.
The twin murder of the Youth Congress workers was a major issue during the Lok Sabha polls in 2019. The Congress had used it to accuse the CPI(M) of promoting political murder in Kerala.
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