15 convicted in Kerala BJP leader's murder sentenced to death penalty
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The Mavelikkara Additional Sessions Court in Kerala's Alappuzha district today pronounced the death penalty for all 15 accused involved in the murder of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ranjith Sreenivasan. This ruling marks the first instance in Kerala's legal history where all convicts in a single case have been sentenced to capital punishment.
The judgment, delivered by Judge Sreedevi VG, follows the court's findings on January 20, 2023, which declared the accused, associated with the Popular Front of India (PFI) and Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), guilty of the crime.
Ranjith, a lawyer and the BJP's OBC Morcha state secretary was attacked and killed at his residence in Alappuzha on December 19, 2021, by members of PFI and SDPI, hours after the killing of SDPI State Secretary KS Shan by members allegedly associated with the RSS.
Although the killing of the SDPI leader occurred first, resulting in the revenge killing of Ranjit, the trial for the investigation into KS Shan's death has yet to commence, despite the reported submission of a final probe report.
Among the convicted individuals are Naisam, Ajmal, Anoop, Mohammed Aslam, Salam Ponnad, Abdul Kalam, Munshad, Saffaruddin, Jaseeb Raja, Navas, Sameer, Nazir, Zakir Hussain, Shaji, and Shernas Ashraf. Eight of them were directly involved in the murder, while the remaining were found guilty of criminal conspiracy.
The accused, who fled after the murder, were apprehended by law enforcement authorities following extensive investigations, including the retrieval of CCTV footage depicting the gang's arrival at the crime scene. A Special Investigation Team, formed under the leadership of Alappuzha DYSP NR Jayaraj, facilitated the arrests.
The prosecution argued for maximum punishment, citing the premeditated and brutal nature of the crime, which unfolded in the presence of Ranjith's mother, infant, and wife. They asserted that the SDPI-PFI workers functioned as a "trained killer squad," emphasizing the crime's classification as one of the "rarest of the rare."
The court proceedings revealed details, including the discovery of a hit list on the mobile phone of the third accused, Anoop, where Ranjith was identified as the primary target.
