In yet another major twist in the sensational TP Chandrasekharan murder case, it has come to light that the government has initiated a move to commute the sentence of P K Kunjananthan, one of the convicts in the case.
The Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP), founded by Chandrasekharan in 2009 and now headed by his widow K K Rema, will approach the court against the government's move.
The move attempts to commute the sentence of Kunjananthan, who was awarded lifetime imprisonment in the case, by taking advantage of the concessions given to prisoners above 70 years of age.
Usually prisoners who have serious health issues or battling terminal diseases are the ones considered for commuting sentence.
“In Kunjananthan’s case, there are no reports that he has any health issues,” KK Rema told TNM.
According to sources, the Kannur Superintendent of Police is preparing a report as per a government directive related to commuting the sentence. For a report of this nature, statements of the relatives of both the victim and the accused should be recorded by the police stations concerned. The move came to light when the Sub Inspector of Kolavallur police station in Kannur registered Rema’s statement.
Kunjananthan is a member of the Panoor Area Committee of the CPI (M), the party that leads the ruling Left Democratic Front in the state.
He was the 13th accused in the case and was convicted for being part of the conspiracy.
“RMP will move the court against the government decision,” Rema added.
She also alleged that Kujananthan has been out on parole many times after he was convicted in January 2014.
Through the Right to Information Act, Rema had accessed details of his parole till July 8 2017. “Till that time he was out on parole 217 times. After the LDF came to power, from June 2016 to July 2017 he was at his home every month,” she said.
Rema had complained to the DGP (Prisons) R Sreelekha against the frequent paroles, for which she got a reply that the parole was granted subjected to law.
Chandrasekharan, a dedicated leader, was the face of the CPI (M) in Kozhikode. He parted ways with the party in 2009 owing to differences of opinion and founded RMP. He was killed in May 2012 in one of the most cold-blooded crimes the state has ever seen.
In November 2017, Kunjananthan took part in the Kuthuparamba local committee meeting of the CPI (M), which had kicked off a row.