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[T P Chandrasekharan Murder] Kerala High Court Upholds Conviction Of Accused, Sets Aside Acquittal Of Two

Tellmy Jolly

19 Feb 2024 5:58 AM GMT

    • [T P Chandrasekharan Murder] Kerala High Court Upholds Conviction Of Accused, Sets Aside Acquittal Of Two

    The Kerala High Court has today confirmed the conviction of the accused in the murder of T P Chandrasekharan under Section 302 (punishment for murder) and Section 120B (criminal conspiracy) . It also sets aside the acquittal of the 10th and 12th accused and convicted them also under Sections 120B read with Section 302 IPC. The Court has directed the production of the accused before the Court...

    The Kerala High Court has today confirmed the conviction of the accused in the murder of T P Chandrasekharan under Section 302 (punishment for murder) and Section 120B (criminal conspiracy) . It also sets aside the acquittal of the 10th and 12th accused and convicted them also under Sections 120B read with Section 302 IPC. The Court has directed the production of the accused before the Court for sentencing on February 26, 2024, at 10.15 am. The acquittal of other accused was also confirmed today.

    T P Chandrasekharan, who was a member of the Communist Party of India, Marxist, [CPI (M)] formed a new political party called the Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP). According to the prosecution case, to wreck vengeance for the loss of the C.P.I (M) candidate at the Vatakara constituency in the Lok Sabha election, he was hacked to death on a public road on May 4, 2012.

    The Division Bench comprising Justice A.K.Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice Kauser Edappagath while confirming the conviction held thus:

    “We sustain the conviction Of Anoop (Accused 1), Manoj Kumar @ Kirmani Manoj( Accused 2), N.K.Sunil Kumar @ Kodi Suni( Accused 3), Rajeesh Thondikkandi @ T.K (Accused 4), K.K.Muhammed Shafi @ Shafi (Accused 5), Sijith S @ Annan Sijith (Accused 6), K.Shinoj, (Accused 7), K.C.Ramachandran (Accused 8), Manojan @ Trousar Manojan (Accused 11), and Padinjare Kunhikkattil Kunhanandan( Accused 13) in respect of the charges proved against them.”

    “Additionally we convict accused 1 to 5 and 7 under Section 120 B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC as well. We set aside acquittal for K K Krishnan (Accused 10) and Geothi Babu (Accused 12) and convict them under Section 120 B read with 302 IPC. We confirm the acquittal of other accused.”

    The Court has further directed jail authorities to produce the accused 1-8, 11 in person before the Court in person on February 26, 2024, at 10.15 am to hear accused 1-5, 7 on sentence under Section 120 B IPC, and all of them for plea enhancement of sentence and compensation.

    The Court has thus directed for issuing of non-bailable warrants for K K Krishnan (Accused 10) and Geothi Babu (Accused 12) for committing them to prison and for producing them also before the High Court on February 26, 2024, for hearing the sentence.

    The allegation was that 1st accused rammed into the motorcycle throwing Chandrshekaran on the road. When he fell on the road, the accused hacked him to death by striking him with swords, and the other accused using bombs prevented witnesses from approaching the scene of the incident. Other accused were charged with criminal conspiracy and for executing the murder and later in screening the accused or obliterating the evidence of the crime.

    FIR No. 433 was registered in the year 2012 at the Vadakara Police Station Kozhikode. The Additional District Court judge R. Narayana Pisharadi (Special Additional Sessions Judge(Marad Cases) convicted 11 accused to life imprisonment under Section 302 (punishment for murder) in the year 2014.

    [Update: The Court has modified the judgment and upheld the conviction of two more persons (Accused 18- Rafeek and Accused 31-Pradeepan M K @Lambu) in the T P Chandrashekaran murder case].

    Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (Ker) 121

    Case title: K C Ramachandran v State of Kerala & Connected Matters

    Case number: Crl.A Nos. 172, 174, 176, 177, 178, 179, 180, 339, 403, 892 of 2014 and Crl.Appeal (Victim) No.571 of 2015

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