The Kozhikode IIIrd Additional Sessions Court has posted to September 11 the orders on the discharge petitions of the accused in the case relating to a section of the Communist Party of India- Marxist [CPI-M] conspiring to kill the Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP) leader T.P. Chandrasekaharan in 2009.
This was after Judge P.J. Vincent on Thursday accepted the counter petitions from the prosecution side and heard the arguments of the special prosecutor, P. Kumarankutty, in this regard. Less than a fortnight ago, the court had asked the prosecution to file counter petitions against the petitions moved by the counsel of the accused seeking their discharge under Section 227 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). Mr. Kumarankutty argued that the evidence corroborated from the witnesses in the case was enough to frame charge sheet against the accused. But the defence counsel had argued that the prosecution had failed to submit convincing material documents to prove the charges against the accused.
The defence counsel also came up with a significant argument under Section 300 (2) (person once convicted or acquitted not to be tried for the same offence) of the CrPC. This could amount to double jeopardy, K. Viswan, said.
The case was that a section of CPI (M) leaders in Kozhikode and Kannur districts had hatched a conspiracy to kill Chandrasekharan in August 2009 and employed a gang to kill him between September and November, 2009. This came to light when investigators questioned Shijith, one of the members of the killer-gang involved in the murder case.
The Special Additional Sessions Court (Marad cases) had convicted 12 accusedin connection with the murder of Chandrasekharan at Onchiyam on May 4, 2012.
