The Sixth Additional Sessions Court in Thiruvananthapuram on May 13, Tuesday sentenced Kedal Jinson Raja to life imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 15 lakh for the brutal murders of four of his family members including a relative. The verdict was delivered a day after the court convicted Raja in the horrifying 2017 case which had sent shockwaves across Kerala. The incident was infamously referred to as the Nanthancode massacre.
According to the prosecutor, Raja has been awarded seven years of imprisonment under IPC Section 436 (mischief by fire) and another five years under IPC Section 201 (causing disappearance of evidence). “His life imprisonment will commence only after completing these initial 12 years. In total, he will have to remain in prison for up to 25 years,” the prosecutor told the media.
The court rejected the prosecution's plea for the death penalty, which was argued that the case belonged to the “rarest of the rare” category. Prosecutors contended that the sheer brutality of the killings — which involved poisoning, mutilation, and burning of the victims — warranted the maximum punishment under the law. They also refuted the defense’s claim of mental instability.
Raja’s defense had urged the court to consider his age and mental state, claiming he was not of sound mind at the time of the crime. However, the court dismissed these arguments, agreeing with expert testimony that confirmed Rajal did not suffer from any diagnosed mental illness.
The gruesome crime took place over two days, April 5 and 6, 2017, at the family's residence in Bains Compound near Cliff House, Nanthancode. Raja, a medical graduate, murdered his father Dr. Raja Thankam, mother Dr. Jean Padma, sister Dr. Caroline, and a family relative named Lalitha. Forensic investigations revealed that the victims were hacked with sharp weapons and three of the bodies were set on fire. One body was discovered wrapped in bedsheets inside the home.
Investigators were baffled by Raja’s motive, which he claimed was rooted in his obsession with astral projection. According to his confession, Raja poisoned the family’s food with pesticides to incapacitate them, and proceeded to murdered them as part of an “experiment” in out-of-body experiences.
A medical board had earlier certified him as mentally sound, enabling the trial to proceed. The final arguments in the case concluded on April 28, after which the verdict, originally scheduled for May 6 was ultimately delivered on May 12.