THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: As Palakkad special judge KM Ratheesh Kumar convicted 14 people for killing a 27-year-old tribal man, Madhu, special public prosecutor Rajesh M Menon and the district’s superintendent of police (SP) R Viswanadh said they were happy with the verdict.
Madhu’s mother, Malli, isn’t so sure.
The 68-year-old, who has doggedly pursued the case after the death of her son and kept prodding the administration when she felt it was going slow, said she was told the judge convicted 14 of the 16 people tried in the case for culpable homicide and not murder.
“I do not know the law but I was told most of the accused were found guilty of culpable homicide, not murder. And I was also upset with the court acquitting two accused. I will go for appeal after consulting the public prosecutor,” Malli said, adding that she will wait for the court to rule on the quantum of punishment on Wednesday before taking the next step.
Madhu was mercilessly thrashed by a group of people on February 22, 2018, who accused him of stealing food items in Attapadi, one of the most impoverished areas of the state. The mob eventually handed over Madhu to the police but he died soon after. The autopsy report said he suffered serious internal injuries.
The authorities were forced to act against the culprits after video clips of the brutal attack emerged that sparked national outrage.
“It was a long journey,” Malli said on Tuesday. A special investigating team probed the case but there was a long delay in the appointment of the prosecutor, prompting Malli to send a moving letter to chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan to seek his intervention.
“What is the cost of human life? One kg rice, 250 gms of tea dust and some dal equivalent to a life. My son was never a thief,” she wrote in her letter.
When the trial finally started, 24 of the 129 witnesses turned hostile.
“Even some of our relatives turned hostile… Anyways Madhu has gone, then why did you take up the case like this, was the common question. I was threatened by many. Is it so simple to snuff out life like this? I will take it to its logical end,” she said, underlining that she had faith in the judicial system. Last week, the court ordered police protection for her family ahead of the verdict.
Rajesh Menon, the third public prosecutor in the case, said he was happy with the verdict since there were many challenges in the case and “we were heavily depending on the digital evidence”.
State minister K Radhakrishnan said he welcomed the verdict. “We welcome the verdict. Hope it will act as a strong deterrent against attacks against weaker sections,” he said.