Kochi: In a significant ruling, a special CBI court in Thiruvananthapuram has found fourteen individuals, including Babu Panicker, a member of the CPM Kollam district committee, guilty of the 2010 murder of 44-year-old Congress member Anchal Ramabhadran in Yeroor, Anchal. The court is set to pronounce the sentences on July 30. Meanwhile, four others charged in the case—S Jayamohan, chairman of the Cashew Development Corporation and a member of the district secretariat, Riyaz, Markson Yesudas, and Roykutty—were acquitted due to lack of evidence.

On April 10, 2010, at approximately 9 PM, CPM activists killed INTUC office bearer Ramabhadran at his rented home in Yeroor. While Ramabhadran was conversing with his children in the kitchen, the accused burst into the residence. Ramabhadran attempted to flee but was pursued and hacked to death. He was taken to the hospital immediately but succumbed to his injuries the next morning.

The testimonies of Ramabhadran’s wife and two children, who witnessed the brutal murder, played a crucial role in the case. The perpetrators were found guilty under Sections 20 and 27 of the Arms Act, as well as Sections 302, 120(b), and 201 of the Indian Penal Code. The convicted individuals include Girishkumar, Padman, Afzal, Najmal, Shibu, Vimal, Sudheesh, Shan, Ratheesh, Biju, Ranjith, Sally alias Kochunni, Riaz alias Muneer, DYFI leader Riaz, Markson, former CPM Anchal Area Secretary PS Suman, CPM ex-District Committee member Babu Panicker, Jaimohan, Roykutty, and Ravindran.

The murder trial faced delays initially. Dissatisfied with the local police and crime branch investigations, Ramabhadran’s family petitioned the court, leading to the case being handed over to the CBI. Initially, the local police detained sixteen CPM employees, but Bindhu, Ramabhadran’s wife, filed a case with the High Court, claiming the investigation by the Left government was biased, prompting CBI involvement.

Ramabhadran was an INTUC local leader and vice-president of the Congress for the Eroor seat. According to the CBI inquiry, his efforts to bolster the Congress party’s influence and recruit CPM members were the motives behind the murder. The crime stemmed from a conflict between local Congress workers and the first accused, Girish, a CPM member. The murder was attributed to animosity over a temple celebration dispute, after which Ramabhadran helped some of those jailed in securing bail.

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