PK Kunjananthan, one of the 13 convicts in the TP Chandrasekharan murder case in Kerala, is reported to have been granted as many as 389 days of parole, since he was sentenced to life imprisonment in January 2014. According to a report by Manoramaonline, CPI(M) leader, Kunjananthan, who has been out on parole for 40 days, had his parole extended by another five days on Monday.
Kunjanathan, who is lodged at the Central Prison in Kannur, had been granted parole for a period of 10 days by jail authorities. Following this, the state Home Ministry extended his parole for another 15 days. When his parole was to end, the CPI(M) leader was granted another 15-day extension. With the latest extension granted on Monday, Kunajanathan will be out on parole for 45 days.
TNM had earlier reported that between May 25, 2015 and June 8, 2017 Kunjananthan was granted parole for a whopping 217 days. The details of his parole then were accessed by KK Rema, the widow of Chandrasekharan, through an RTI.
Speaking to TNM on Wednesday, KK Rema said that she is aware of the benefits and the privileges that Kunjananthan receives from the state government. “Ever since he was convicted, he keeps visiting his home every month and when we complained about this to the DGP, we were told that the parole was granted according to the law.”
She added, “The CPI(M)-led state government feels that since they are ruling the state, no one will question them. The CM who controls the Home Ministry has a huge role in helping the convict.”
“We also came to know that Kunjananthan’s name was included in the list of convicts that were to be released a few months back. Following this, we gave a complaint to the Governor of Kerala because of which we believe that the state government had to abandon their move to release Kunjananthan,” said Rema.
KK Rema said that the Revolutionary Marxist Party which was formed by her husband, TP Chandrasekharan will move the High Court if the state government attempts to commute his sentence.
51-year-old TP Chandrasekharan, founder of the Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP) in Kerala was hacked to death in Kozhikode on May 4, 2012. Chandrasekharan was murdered in cold blood three years after he quit the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and founded the RMP in 2009.
KK Rema, who took over the reins of the party following his death, and other party members continue to allege the involvement of Pinarayi Vijayan in the murder.