The Kerala High Court, on Tuesday, October 15, sentenced eight accused in the murder of Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) activist CK Shibin Bhaskaran of Nadapuram. Shibin was killed by a 10 member gang of Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) workers at Thuneri near Nadapuram on January 22, 2015. A Kozhikode Special Additional Sessions Court had acquitted all the 17 accused in the case in 2016. A bench of justices PB Suresh Kumar and C Pratheep Kumar overturned the acquittal on October 4, saying that it was based on “non-consideration of material facts and consideration of irrelevant facts.”
The court also observed that such acquittals would also send a “dangerous misleading message”, suggesting that those responsible for grave offences can evade justice.
A1 Ismail, A2 Muneer, A4 Sidhique, A5 Muhammed Anees, A6 Shuhaib, A15 Jasim, A16 Samad alias Abdul Samad, A17 Ahammed Haji alias Amad alias Ammad are now sentenced to rigorous life imprisonment, and imposed with a fine of Rs 1 lakh each. Of the total fine amount, Rs 5 lakh would be given to the family of Shibin.
Of the 17 accused, the third one - Aslam - had expired and the charges were abated against him. He was brutally murdered by a six-member gang in 2016.
The court said that it was of the firm opinion that the trial court made a mistake by ignoring important facts and focusing on irrelevant ones when it decided to acquit all of them. “In this context, it is necessary to state that acquittal of guilty persons in serious crimes on technical or flimsy grounds would erode the very foundation of the criminal justice delivery system, which strives to balance individual rights with the preservation of social order. Such outcomes not only shake the faith of the public in the courts as guardians of justice but also deprive society of the protection it seeks from the courts. Such acquittals would also send a dangerous misleading message, suggesting that those responsible for grave offences can evade justice, thereby encouraging an environment of lawlessness,” the court said.