A special court of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday, July 12, convicted six more persons in the 2010 hand-chopping case of professor TJ Joseph in Kerala, while five others were acquitted. The first accused, Savad, is still at large. The case pertains to a brutal attack on the Malayalam professor by members of the Popular Front of India, a radical Muslim group, who alleged that a question in an internal examination he conducted had inflammatory remarks on Prophet Mohammed. In the first phase of the trial, held in April 2015, the NIA court had convicted 13 persons and acquitted 18 others.
The trial’s second phase was presided over by special court judge Anil K Bhaskar, who found the second accused Sajil, third accused Nasar, fifth accused Najeeb, ninth accused Noushad, 11th accused PP Moideen Kunhu, and 12th accused Ayoob guilty in the case.
Sajil, Nasar, and Najeeb have been charged under sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), Section 3 (punishment for causing explosion likely to endanger life or property) of the Explosive Substances Act, and various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Nasar was named the chief conspirator in the NIA chargesheet.
Noshad, Moideen, and Ayoob have only been convicted under sections of the IPC. Five others — Shefeeq, Azeez Odakali, Muhammed Rafi, Subair, and Mansoor — were let off due to lack of evidence.
The quantum of sentence for those convicted is expected to be pronounced on Thursday. It may be recalled that in 2015, the NIA court had handed out a sentence of eight years in prison to 10 of the convicts, while three others were given a jail term of two years. The court had also ordered that out of the fine imposed on the accused under various provisions, an amount of Rs 8 lakh should be given to Joseph as compensation.
Speaking to the media after the verdict on Wednesday, professor Joseph said he was no more interested in the case than any other Indian citizen would be. “I don’t subscribe to the belief that punishment to the accused is justice to the victim. I only consider this as an enactment of Indian law,” he said. Referring to those convicted in the case as “victims to primitive beliefs”, he said it was high time that everyone adopted a scientific mindset, chose humanity and kinship, and truly developed into modern citizens.
Joseph was the faculty of the NewMans College at Thodupuzha in Idukki. On July 4, 2010, the professor was returning home along with his family after attending Sunday mass, when he was attacked and his right hand was chopped off by the accused.
What triggered the radical group was a Malayalam question paper Joseph wrote, in which he had selected a paragraph from a short story by CPI(M) leader PT Kunju Mohammed to test students on punctuation. In the story, a nameless village madcap questions god. When setting the question, Joseph had named him Mohammed. This had created a controversy after a newspaper affiliated with the Jamaat-e-Islami carried the news with prominence.