20 acquitted in RMP leader murder case

A court in Kozhikode in Kerala on Wednesday acquitted 20 people accused in cases related to the murder of Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP) leader T P Chandrasekharan.

The Special Additional District and Sessions Court in Eranjippalam, Kozhikode, set free the accused citing lack of evidence. Among the 20 acquitted are CPM Kannur district secretariat member Karayi Rajan and SFI Kannur district secretary Sarin Sasi.

The remaining 36 of the total 56 accused will now face trial in the controversial case that continues to trigger intense political debates more than a year after the murder.

Chandrasekharan, a CPM leader who quit the party to form the RMP, was hacked to death by a gang of assailants in May last year. The prosecution in the case was hit by recurring instances of witnesses turning hostile. Of the 166 prosecution witnesses, 52 turned hostile during a period of four months.

K K Rama, wife of the slain  leader, said the verdict was on expected lines and alleged that the witnesses turned hostile due to pressure from the CPM.