Congress petitions Kerala Governor against remission to murder convict

Thiruvananthapuram: Congress on Friday petitioned Kerala Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar against giving remission to a woman undergoing life term sentence for murdering her father-in-law for property.

Former opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala, who gave the petition to the governor, also alleged that a minister in the state intervened for extending the 'undue favour' to the convict.

The state cabinet has decided to recommend to the Governor to give remission to Sherin, who was sentenced for murdering her 66-year-old father-in-law Bhaskara Karanavar in 2009 at Chenganur in Alappuzha owing to property dispute. The decision invited widespread criticism.

Chennithala said in the letter to the Governor that granting remission to the convict in a cold blooded murder would undermine public trust in the judiciary and legal system. He also alleged that it was part of a larger conspiracy to set a precedent for granting remission to convicts in cases like the murder of CPI(M) dissident leader T P Chandrasekharan.