When four convicts in the Periya double murder case walked out of the Kannur central prison on January 9, after the High Court suspended their sentences, two top leaders of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) - P Jayarajan and MV Jayarajan - were among the crowd to welcome them with red garlands.
The Special CBI Court in Ernakulam had sentenced 14 individuals including four prominent leaders of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on January 3, 2025. The High Court on January 8 had also allowed conditional bails to KV Kunhiraman, former CPI(M) MLA, Raghavan Velutholi, K Manikandan and KV Bhaskaran, who were found guilty of offence under Section 225, which deals with obstruction of arrest and were sentenced to five years.
The order was issued by a Bench led by Justice PB Suresh Kumar during the hearing of an appeal filed by the convicts against the CBI court's verdict.
The CPI(M) has maintained that it has no official links to the February 2019 murder of two Congress workers, Kripesh and Sarath Lal PK, in Periya, Kasaragod district, Kerala. The murders were committed in retaliation to an attack on Peethambaran, the first accused in the case and a local committee member of the CPI(M) on January 5, 2019. Sarath Lal was one of the persons who allegedly attacked them during a clash at Kalliot in Kasaragod involving activists of the Kerala Students Union and the Students Federation of India.
After the conviction, veteran CPI(M) leader and state committee member P Jayarajan visited the accused at Kannur Central Jail.
“Comrade KV Kunhiraman is the CPI(M)’s district secretary and Manikandan is a district committee member. I met five comrades and gifted them a book of mine. Don’t try to intimidate communists by highlighting jail visits; jails are nothing new for us,” he told the media.
“CPI(M) is committed to ending political killings. However, the right-wing media in Kerala is pushing an anti-Left narrative. Some media outlets conveniently ignore the CPI(M) workers who have been killed here. I came here as a CPI(M) state committee member, not just because I am a member of the Jail Advisory Committee,” he said.
CPI(M) Ernakulam district secretary CN Mohanan also visited the accused at the CBI court in Kochi after the verdict. Several prominent CPI(M) leaders, including MV Jayarajan and EP Jayarajan, openly supported P Jayarajan’s visit.
The conviction of CPI(M) leaders, including a former MLA, has however exposed the support provided by the party to perpetrators and interference with the initial police investigation. While the state's Crime Branch initially cleared the party of involvement, a subsequent CBI probe uncovered deeper aspects of the plot and a cover-up attempt, leading to the conviction of senior party leaders who had been previously excluded from the investigation. The CPI(M)-led state government had tried to block the CBI investigation by challenging it in the High Court and the Supreme Court, allegedly spending around Rs 1 crore.
Crime Branch coverup
On February 17, 2019, Sarath Lal and Kripesh were brutally attacked and killed. Kripesh sustained over 15 wounds and abrasions across his body, while Sarath Lal had around 20. Kripesh succumbed to a chop wound on his head, while Sarath Lal died due to wounds on his head and limbs.
Two days later, A Peethambaran, identified as the main accused, was arrested. On February 21, the Kerala Police Crime Branch took over the investigation. The Crime Branch submitted its chargesheet in May 2020, naming 14 accused, all linked to the CPI(M).
The Crime Branch claimed that Peethambaran’s personal grudge led to Sarath Lal’s murder, while Kripesh’s death was incidental. It wasn’t political but personal. Dissatisfied with the investigation, the victims’ families approached the High Court, seeking a CBI inquiry as they were convinced the murders were political .
The High Court’s observations, while hearing a plea by the families of the victims, too was critical of the CPI(M). While ordering a CBI probe, the Division Bench noted:
“...if the twin murder was planned and executed by the first accused, Peethambaran, alone without the support of the CPI(M), it is not discernible as to why the local party leaders reached Velutholi and took the accused to the party office after the incident.”
The court also highlighted significant lapses in the Crime Branch investigation:
“Taking note of the serious slackness and incompleteness in the investigation—which, if conducted diligently, might have shifted the case from relying on circumstantial evidence to one based on direct evidence—we are compelled to conclude that, to instill confidence and ensure justice for the parties, it is appropriate to transfer the investigation to the CBI,” stated the Division Bench while upholding the Single Bench verdict on August 25, 2020, transferring the case to the CBI.
Prominent CPI(M) leaders such as KV Kunhiraman, a former MLA and district committee member; K Manikandan, Kanhangad block panchayat president and former area secretary of Uduma; and Raghavan Velutholi, former local secretary of the party in Pakkam, were initially excluded from the Crime Branch’s report. However, the CBI later named them as accused.
Court finds Crime Branch suppressed statements
The recent CBI court found that the Crime Branch failed to record critical statements from key witnesses. For instance, the verdict highlighted a statement from Krishnan (PW 20), who testified that he saw Peethambaran and the fifth accused, Gijin, running with weapons. Krishnan revealed that when the CBI read his earlier statement, recorded by the Crime Branch, he realized certain portions of his oral statement had not been included.
The Crime Branch also omitted statements by a journalist. On February 18, 2019, a day after the crime, a regional journalist named Madhavan informed the police that “a vehicle was hidden at a place called Pakkam” and expressed his willingness to lead the police to it. The vehicle belonged to Saji C George, the second accused in the case.
When the police team, accompanied by Madhavan, reached the location, they found Saji and apprehended him. However, the prosecution revealed that several individuals, including former Uduma MLA KV Kunhiraman (A20), Co-operative Bank Secretary Bhaskaran (A22), Velutholil Raghavan (A21), and Manikandan (A14), arrived at the scene shortly thereafter.
According to the prosecution, these individuals confronted the police officers. Saji was seated inside the police jeep when KV Kunhiraman allegedly quarreled with Sub-Inspector Prasanth and issued threats. Despite the intervention of Manjeswaram Circle Inspector Sibi, Kunhiraman and others forcibly freed Saji from the police jeep and fled the scene. The entire episode was witnessed by Madhavan (PW130), who provided exhaustive testimony in court.
The CBI court accepted Madhavan’s account, commending his reliability and credibility. The court stated:
“The evidence given by PW130, Madhavan, a journalist, is wholly reliable, trustworthy, and appears free from embellishments and additions. His testimony inspires the confidence of the court.”
The court found IPC Section 225 (resistance or obstruction to lawful apprehension of another person) proven against these accused and criticized the Crime Branch for omitting this aspect of the investigation from its final report. The court observed:
“This is a case where the Crime Branch suppressed this part of the investigation while filing the final report.”
Madhavan’s statements played a pivotal role in the indictment of the CPI(M) leaders in the case. The court considered this a significant piece of evidence linking the party to the murders.
Additionally, the government’s appeal against the pleas for a CBI inquiry, coupled with the High Court’s observations on the lapses in the state police investigation, further weakened the CPI(M)’s claims of non-involvement.
Efforts to block CBI inquiry
The CPI(M)-led Kerala government initially responded to the Periya twin murders by distancing itself from the crime while expressing solidarity with the victims. However, despite assurances of impartiality, the government’s subsequent actions raised suspicions.
The incident occurred just two months before the 2019 elections. CPI(M) leader Kodiyeri Balakrishnan stated, “If any local CPI(M) workers are involved, we will not protect them.” Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan assured action against the accused but denied any party involvement, stating, “There was an LDF march happening that day. Would anyone with political sense commit such a murder? The government's role is to take strict action against the accused.”
Despite these statements, the government’s actions told a different story. On October 26, 2019, the Kerala government appealed to a division bench of the High Court to block the CBI probe. However, on August 25, 2020, the division bench upheld the single bench’s decision to transfer the case to the CBI. The state government then challenged the High Court verdict in the Supreme Court on September 12, 2020. On December 1, 2020, the Supreme Court dismissed the petition, clearing the way for the CBI to take over the investigation.
The CPI(M) and the state government argued against the CBI probe, claiming the police investigation was on the right track. In 2020, CPI(M) leader and current Kerala Speaker AN Shamseer said, “We cannot claim that the Kerala police were ineffective. The conviction rate in Kerala police investigations is higher than that of the CBI. The Kerala police have already arrested the accused in this case. The CBI is not a holy cow.”
The Opposition alleged that the government spent nearly ₹1 crore from the public exchequer to fight the court’s order for a CBI probe. Opposition Leader VD Satheesan remarked, “Around ₹1 crore of taxpayers' money was used, with the Chief Minister's full awareness, to block the CBI from investigating the crime. Kerala should be ashamed to reflect on how a party ruthlessly killed two youths, attempted to destroy evidence, and shielded the perpetrators.”
Senior advocates Maninder Singh, Prabhas Bajaj, and Ranjith Kumar represented the Kerala government during the appeal in 2020.
On December 14, 2020, the CBI formally took over the investigation. A year later, in December 2021, the agency arrested five accused. The trial commenced at the CBI Special Court in Kochi on February 2, 2023.
The investigation faced significant challenges. When the CBI began its probe in December 2020, there were complaints about the state government’s lack of cooperation, including its failure to provide a camp office or vehicles for the agency. In a status report filed in March 2021, the CBI highlighted the Crime Branch’s reluctance to share crucial documents and case diaries.
The first accused, A Peethambaran, a former CPI(M) local committee member in Periya, was immediately expelled from the party following his arrest. However, Peethambaran’s family told Asianet News at the time that he acted on behalf of the party. “He wouldn’t have done this on his own. Now the party is betraying him as elections are approaching,” his family claimed.
According to reports, the family did not make any further public statements after this, as the party reportedly extended legal assistance to them.
Families of victims accuse CPI(M) of planned murder
The families of Sarath Lal and Kripesh are determined to continue their legal battle, seeking justice for their loved ones by ensuring that all the accused face punishment. They remain convinced of the CPI(M)’s involvement in the crime and have consistently advocated for an impartial investigation.
Their petition to the High Court, demanding a CBI probe, pointed to irregularities in the state-led investigation. It specifically highlighted the abrupt transfer of Crime Branch Superintendent Mohammed Rafique, who had been expanding the probe to include district-level CPI(M) leaders. The family termed the transfer “a revengeful action.”
“The SIT, reconstituted thereafter, has been conducting the investigation in a highly partisan manner, completely disregarding the established procedures and methods prescribed by law,” the petition alleged.