The Kerala High Court, on Friday, December 13, suspended the sentence and granted conditional bail to MK Nasar (56), the third accused in the sensational case of chopping off the palm of Malayalam professor TJ Joseph.
A division bench comprising Justices V Raja Vijayaraghavan and PV Balakrishnan noted that Nasar had already undergone incarceration for over nine years and cited potential delays in appeal proceedings as a key factor in the bail decision.
The gruesome incident dates back to July 4, 2010, when Joseph, a professor at Newman College, Thodupuzha, was returning from Sunday mass with his family.
Members of the now-banned Popular Front of India attacked him, allegedly in retaliation for a question paper he set, which contained a passage that they claimed insulted Prophet Mohammed was derogatory. His right had was hopped off in this attack.
Described by the sessions court as the "master conspirator", Nasar was accused of playing a critical role in the attack. Investigations revealed his involvement in recruiting gang members, assigning specific tasks, collecting funds, procuring communication devices, and maintaining communication links with key conspirators.
The case initially involved 54 suspects. The police's first final report on January 14, 2011, named 27 accused. Subsequently, the National Investigating Agency (NIA) filed supplementary reports on January 18, 2013, adding 10 more names.
Of the 37 total accused, six remain absconding, while 31 faced trial. Thirteen of these were eventually convicted. Both the convicts and the NIA have filed appeals in the case.
The high court highlighted that Nasar surrendered in November 2015, with the trial commencing in June 2021 and judgment delivered in July 2023, totaling nine years of incarceration.
In the first phase of the trial, the NIA court sentenced 10 convicts to eight years in prison, while three others received two-year jail terms.
Observing the prolonged detention and citing the potential for trial delays, the court suspended Nasar's sentence and granted conditional bail, taking into account that some co-accused with similar allegations had already been released after serving shorter terms.
The prime accused, Savad, has surrendered, and his trial is currently underway.