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After more than two decades of legal battles, KK Surendran, a victim of custodial torture in Muthanga of Sulthan Bathery, Wayanad, has received a court verdict ordering the Kerala government to pay him Rs 12.5 lakh in compensation.
The legal battle spanning 22 years stemmed from a false case filed by the Kerala police in connection with the Muthanga agitation. Surendran was tortured in custody, the physical effects of which he continues to suffer even now, including partial hearing loss.
The Muthanga agitation was a land occupation struggle led by the Adivasi Gothra Maha Sabha at the Muthanga Wildlife Sanctuary in Wayanad in February 2003.
Surendran was arrested by the police for allegedly supporting the protestors and was labelled a left-wing extremist. “The police alleged that I trained the Adivasis to use arms while they were protesting for land. I had no connection to the agitation,” he said.
Later, a CBI inquiry resulted in his release from jail.
However, the physical injuries and trauma he suffered due to custodial torture at the Sulthan Bathery police station remained in his memory. This prompted him to file a petition in court seeking compensation.
Although he received a favourable court order in 2021, the then-government, led by the Left Democratic Front (LDF), appealed against it.
After about five years, he obtained another favourable judgement on March 16 this year.
Surendran, a Dalit man and a retired faculty member at the District Institute of Education and Training (DIET), met with Kerala Chief Minister VD Satheesan on July 9, who assured him that the state would not appeal the decision and would proceed with the compensation payment.
Unsettled wounds
During the Muthanga struggle, agitating Adivasis occupied forest land to protest broken government promises regarding land distribution. Over 600 tribal families entered the Muthanga forest area, set up temporary huts, and began cultivating the land as a form of peaceful protest. The movement was led by the Adivasi Gothra Maha Sabha (AGMS) and notable leaders such as CK Janu and M Geethanandan.
A police firing on February 19 resulted in two deaths: one tribal man and one policeman. The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) was in power in Kerala at that time, under chief minister AK Antony.
When the Muthanga firing occurred, Surendran was in Thiruvananthapuram participating in a dharna organised by the DIET staff association. "I went to Thiruvananthapuram on February 18, and the dharna took place on 19. I learned about the police action through newspapers," he stated.
However, police found Surendran’s phone number in the diary of one of the protest leaders, M Geethanandan, and alleged that Surendran was connected to the protest.
“As part of my role in DIET, I did work related to tribal education, which is how Geethanandan had my contact number. Apart from that, I had no connection with the struggle. However, police alleged that I gave classes to Adivasis on how to use weapons,” he said.
Surendran was arrested when he returned to Wayanad from Thiruvananthapuram on February 22. He was forcibly taken from his staff room by the police, dragged across the floor in front of colleagues and students, and thrown into a police jeep without disclosure of any reason for arrest. Starting from 10.30 amnthat morning, he was subjected to physical torture till 9.30 pm at the Sulthan Bathery Police Station.
Surendran alleged that he was denied food and water, and his arrest was not communicated to his family. Neither was he produced before a magistrate within 24 hours as mandated by law.
His support for the Adivasi struggle had made him a target for the police, Surendran alleged, adding that the arrest and the fabricated case were all pre-planned.
“Adivasis were conducting a genuine protest for their land. But the then UDF government did not respond to the struggle properly; instead, they gave free rein to the police,” Surendran explained, adding that the police’s handling of the struggle resulted in violence. “The police arrested and assaulted innocent individuals like me,” he said.
After his arrest, his wife approached the Kerala High Court, which directed the authorities to provide him with proper medical treatment. As a result, he was admitted to the Pariyaram Medical College, where he remained under police custody for 12 days while receiving treatment.
Later, the case went to the CBI, who gave him a clean chit.
“If the CBI had not found that I am innocent, I might still not have a job, and I would have still been waiting for the verdict, as the Muthanga case trial finished only recently,” Surendran added.
Surendran returned to the service in 2004, and retired in 2018.
Two decades of legal battle
Immediately after his release from jail on March 30, 2003, he filed a criminal complaint against the police officers who assaulted him. In 2008, the Kerala High Court quashed the case.
In 2004, he filed an indigent original petition (IOP) in the Bathery Sub Court seeking compensation. He requested Rs 15 lakh as compensation for shock, pain, suffering, illegal detention, partial hearing impairment, loss of reputation, loss of amenities and employment, treatment expenses, future treatment expenses, and actual loss of salary.
In 2021, the court ordered that he be awarded Rs 5 lakh as compensation.
“I demanded Rs 15 lakh, and the court in 2021 ordered the minimum compensation to be paid,” he said. He continued, “If the government wanted to, they could provide the funds and resolve the case. However, the Pinarayi government chose to appeal, arguing that the compensation affected the morale of the police.”
He then filed a cross appeal, which remained pending in the Kalpatta district session court from 2021 to 2026. On March 16 this year, the court ordered Rs 12.5 lakhs in compensation.
The court ordered a “total compensation of Rs 12.5 lakh with interest at 6% per annum from the date of filing of the original suit until realisation.” The state has also been ordered to pay the enhanced compensation within three months of the date of the judgement.
The court also directed the Kerala government to initiate proceedings to recover the compensation amount from the personal assets of P Viswambaran and V Devaraj, the then sub-inspector and circle inspector of the Sulthan Bathery Police Station respectively, under the applicable provisions of law.
Surendran explained what fuelled him to continue the legal battle for 22 long years: “I was assaulted, and my left eardrum was ruptured. In addition to the physical trauma, I had my elderly parents, my wife, and my children depending on me. One of my children was studying in class 9, and the other was in class 3. My wife and my parents struggled a lot when I was in jail.”
He said he still suffers from recurring headaches and ear pain. “I also experience persistent pain in my lower back because a police officer kicked me with his boots. It was only after undergoing extensive medical treatment that my condition improved to its present state,” Surendran said.
“I was falsely branded as a ‘teacher associated with terrorism’. That is why I decided to pursue a continuous legal battle to clear my name and seek justice,” he said.