Today, on 30th December A Kerala court acquitted all the accused, said to be members of the Campus Front of, in connection with the murder of an ABVP activist that occurred thirteen years ago. The judgment was delivered by the Mavelikkara Sessions Court.
Kerala: A Kerala court acquitted all the accused, said to be members of the Campus Front, in connection with the murder of an ABVP activist that occurred 13 years ago.
The judgment was delivered by the Mavelikkara Additional Sessions Court.
The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad stated that,
“It would challenge the order before the High Court.”
Additionally, called the decision disheartening.
According to the prosecution, Vishal had come to attend a programme organized to welcome undergraduate students at an aided college in Chengannur on July 16, 2012.
He was allegedly attacked and stabbed to death by activists of the Campus Front, who had reportedly planned the assault in advance.
A total of twenty individuals were named as accused in the case.
The trial gained widespread attention when several witnesses, including members of the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) and the Kerala Students Union (KSU), turned hostile during the court proceedings.
Two of Vishal’s companions suffered serious injuries, and several others were also assaulted in the incident. Vishal, who had sustained critical wounds, succumbed to his injuries the following day while receiving treatment at Kottayam Medical College Hospital.
The case was initially investigated by the local police before the Crime Branch took over the probe.
Vishal, a 19-year-old first-year student at NSS College in Konni, was fatally stabbed in the incident. The accused were members of the Campus Front.
The special public prosecutor expressed disappointment, noting that the court deemed the evidence insufficient to establish guilt.
When questioned if the change in stance of SFI members influenced the acquittal, she suggested it may have had some effect but refuted claims that the prosecution lacked sufficient evidence or that the FIR was weak.
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Defending the first five accused, Advocate Priyadarshan Thambi labeled the case as “fabricated,” asserting that only one person was responsible for Vishal’s death, and consequently, the others should have been acquitted.
He stated,
“They did not do anything. They did not even carry any weapons,”
Meanwhile, the ABVP alleged that leaders from the SFI and KSU tried to sabotage the case, claiming that this influenced the shifts in witness testimonies.
ABVP state president Easwara Prasad announced that the organization would seek recourse in a higher court and would persist with legal efforts until all individuals involved in the murder are held accountable.
He also criticized the police for serious lapses in the investigation, citing significant delays in arresting the accused, particularly the prime suspect.
While condemning successive state governments for not prioritizing the case, emphasizing that the victim was a college student, he noted,
“It took several months for the police even to arrest the prime accused,”
Prasad added,
“These failures forced the ABVP to approach even the Supreme Court, seeking the appointment of a special public prosecutor,”
The incident occurred on July 16, 2012, at Christian College in Chengannur, Alappuzha, where Vishal, an ABVP member, was participating in a fresher’s welcome event. He and his friends were allegedly attacked by Campus Front members.
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Vishal was stabbed, and two others sustained serious injuries, while additional individuals were physically assaulted.
Following the attack, he was admitted to Kottayam Medical College Hospital but succumbed to his injuries the following day.
The case, initially under local police jurisdiction, was later transferred to the crime branch.
However, all accused, including Nazim, Shafeeq, Faizal, Asif, Sanooj, Al Thaj, Safeer, and Afsal, were out on bail when the verdict was delivered after 13 years on Tuesday.