Murder charges against 16 in Madhu case

All the 16 arrested in connection with the lynching of a mentally challenged tribal youth at Mukkali, near Attappady, have been charged with murder and offences under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

Madhu, 29, was beaten to death by local people on February 22 accusing him of theft.

A special investigation team filed the chargesheet at a special court at Mannarkkad, near here. Attappady Deputy Superintendent of Police T.K. Subrahmanyan led the team.

Officials said another chargesheet against the accused for trespassing into the protected Silent Valley National Park to nab Madhu from a cave would be filed next week by a special investigation team of the Forest Department.

Mr. Subrahmanyan told The Hindu that the chargesheet was prepared after recording statements of 165 people of the locality. Among them, 119 had been made witnesses in the case. The chargesheet was filed on completion of three months of the incident.

Mobile camera visuals and CCTV footage of the incident had been submitted along with the chargesheet after scientific examination at the Forensic Science Laboratory in Thiruvananthapuram.

“Provisions of IPC [Indian Penal Code] Sections 362 (abduction), 364 (kidnapping or abducting in order to murder), 365 (kidnapping or abducting with intent secretly and wrongfully to confine person), 302 (murder), 352 (assault or criminal force otherwise than on grave provocation), 326 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means), 143 (unlawful assembly), 144 (joining unlawful assembly armed with deadly weapon), 147 (rioting), and 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon) have been slapped on all the accused. Section 3A of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act has also been invoked against them,” the DySP said.

The chargesheet mentions 15 injuries to Madhu’s body. The police obtained as evidence eight mobile phones the accused used to shoot photos and videos of the lynching. Visuals from three CCTV cameras at Mukkali Junction and five vehicles used by the accused have also been obtained as evidence.

The 16 accused are Hussain, 50, Marakkar, 33, Shamsudheen, 34, Aneesh, 30, Radhakrishnan, 34, Aboobacker, 31, Siddique, 38, Ubaid, 25, Najeeb, 33, Jaijumon, 44, Abdul Kareem, 48, Sajeev, 30, Satheesh, 39, Hareesh, 34, Byju, 41 and Muneer, 28, all residents of Mukkali.