The Kerala police have taken into custody three people suspected to be involved in the murder of an RSS worker in Kerala's Kannur on Friday. Choorakkadu Biju, a 35-year-old, was murdered in cold blood near Payyanur in Kannur.
The police have taken into custody three men including the main suspect called Rineesh. The police action comes hours after a manhunt was launched to track down Biju's murderers.
The recovery of an Innova car in which the team of assailants had travelled, led to the capture. Local reports suggest that the car's owner gave the police details about the assailants.
Though a gang of seven people are suspected to be behind the murder, others are believed to have fled from Kannur.
Police also believe that all the suspects who happen to hail from Payyanur were friends with CV Dhanraj, a slain CPI(M) worker. Biju was the 12th accused in CV Dhanaraj murder case. Dhanraj was hacked to death in July last year. Police believe that the gang of men led by Rineesh, who was a close friend of Dhanraj's, killed Biju in an act of vengeance. Biju was under police protection till last week, according to reports. Though a policeman had been stationed at his house, he was withdrawn last week, reported Manorama.
Biju was murdered around 3pm on Friday, when he was attacked by a group of people who came in a car while he was traveling by bike.
Biju was the Mandal Karyakartha of RSS Kakkampara and his murder has once again started a high pitched political battle between the BJP and the ruling front.
The BJP has asked for AFSPA to be imposed in the district of Kannur.
Case history
On July 11, 2016, CV Dhanaraj was hacked to death in the courtyard of his house near Payyannur town. The assailants had come on motorbikes with swords in hand, and hacked Dhanaraj in front of his family members. Dhanaraj had died on the way to hospital. The murder had resulted in a wave of violence in northern Kerala.
Within hours of Dhanaraj's murder, a leader of the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, CK Ramachandran was murdered in Payyannur. The attackers had hurled country-made bombs at Ramachandran's house at midnight and later stabbed him to death.
Over the next few days, establishments of CPI(M) and the RSS, the BJP and their affiliates were targeted. Hartals were also observed in Kannur by both sides.
C Biju, along with KM Biju, who was the 8th accused in the Dhanaraj murder case, had surrendered to the police in March 2017. The police had registered a case against around 20 BJP and RSS workers in the murder, and 15 people had been arrested in 2016. Twenty two CPI(M) members were accused in the case, and 8 workers were arrested in 2016 for the murder of Ramachandran.