Killers free: 10 yrs on, no justice in Kerala

‘On going through the records, the evidence is shabby and consisted of infirmities. The prosecution has suppressed the material piece of evidence and genesis of occurrence’

It’s a cruel irony, but true. As the nation joins Priyadarshini Matoo and Jessica Lall in their march of justice, away from the limelight and cameras, three families in Kerala quietly marked on Sunday the 10th anniversary of the loss of their teenage children, allegedly killed in a gruesome manner 10 years ago.

Thanks to a highly questionable investigation by the police under the then LDF regime and some deft legal handling, all accused in the broad daylight murders have been acquitted. The accused were sympathisers of CPI(M)’s student and youth wing — SFI and DYFI.

The deceased Kim Karunakaran, Sujith and Anu P.S. were students of the Devasom Board College in Parumala, Pathanamthitta district. Karunakaran and Sujith were doing pre-degree (equivalent of +2) and Anu was in the degree class. All of them were sympathisers of ABVP.

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The incident, in police’s version, goes like this: On September 17, 1996, shortly after the classes began, there was a scuffle in the college and the accused “in furtherance of the common object” mercilessly beat up the trio, who ran to the college boundary wall and jumped into the neighbouring holy river Pampa to save themselves. But the accused then collected on its banks and pelted stones at them making it impossible for them to swim. “Due to collective pelting and attack, Karunakaran, Anu and Sujith died due to drowning”.

The incident had shocked the conscience of god’s own country with intellectuals and politicians alike condemning the tragedy. But four years later, their disparagement was to remain just lip work.

On June 28, 2000, the Additional Sessions Court, Pathanamthitta, acquitted all the 14 accused citing lack of evidence. The trial court order was also a stinging indictment of the manner in which the probe was carried out.

“In the case on hand on going through the records, the evidence is shabby and consisted of infirmities. It is a case where the prosecution has suppressed the material piece of evidence and genesis of occurrence. The start is suppressed, its continuation is concealed and the terminal point is shut out with the result that no reasonable person is able to find out the truth of the case. Investigating officers are changed within hours one after another. Accused persons in the original FIR are deleted and others are newly included,” the court said.

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The investigating agency, said the court, “did not extend the scope of inquiry as to how DYFI sympathisers gained entry into college premises. Timely interference by the police and honest investigation from the start could have brought some of the accused students to the grip of conviction. Lot of public money is spent so as to create a make believe appearance that the prosecution agency has proceeded in the right path.”

On appeal, the high court in June this year upheld the trial court order.

Anu’s father Sasi doesn’t know what to do next. I don’t think any purpose is going to be served by taking this to the Supreme Court, he told The Indian Express reading out a statement of the trial judge from the court order: “In this case, a Sessions Court can do nothing except to shed tears along with the parents of the deceased persons and to record condolence to the bereaved members of their respective families. But the police should not forget that they are guardians of the law and not of politicians.” “What more can I say”, asks Sasi, his voice cracking.