HC acquits 9 in twin murder case

Kochi: The high court has acquitted nine accused in the Kottakkal Kuttippuram Juma Mosque twin murder case in Malappuram district. A bench of Justices P B Suresh Kumar and C Pratheep Kumar set aside the trial court's judgment which had convicted and sentenced nine persons —Abdu Sufiyan, Yusuf Haji, Muhammed Navas, Ibrahim Kutty, Mujeeb Rahman, Saithalavi, Abdul Rasheed, Beeran, and Mohideenkutty — to various punishments, including life term.

The case says that the accused, armed with deadly weapons like knives and iron pipes, formed an unlawful assembly and attacked members of a rival group at the mosque after the Juma prayers, around 1.30pm on Aug 29, 2008. Two victims, Abdu and Aboobacker, succumbed to their injuries. The case originally involved 11 accused but two of them passed away during the pendency of the appeals.

In its judgment, the bench observed that the prosecution failed to present evidence explaining the injuries sustained by the accused. Additionally, some witnesses provided only a one-sided version of events, which the court found misleading.

The court also noted that other individuals present in the mosque, who did not belong to either group, had not been involved in the altercation. Despite this, the prosecution did not call any independent witnesses, which the bench deemed a significant shortcoming in the case. Concluding that the prosecution failed to establish the charges beyond reasonable doubt, the high court allowed the accused's plea against their convictions. tnn