Judgment in Madhu lynching case deferred to April 4

The Special Court for SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act at Mannarkkad on Thursday deferred the judgment on the lynching case of Attappady tribal youth Madhu to April 4.

The Special Court for SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act at Mannarkkad on Thursday deferred the judgment on the lynching case of Attappady tribal youth Madhu to April 4. Justice K.M. Ratheesh Kumar deferred the verdict as the judgment procedures were not completed.

Madhu’s mother Malli and sister Sarasu reached the court on Thursday to hear the verdict pronouncement. Ms. Malli said she expected a verdict that would be welcomed by the people of the State. She appeared confident that her son would get justice.

“The pain we underwent in the last four years has been indescribable. We were nearly ostracised by society. We lived through all this with the hope of finding justice for my son,” she said. Madhu’s sister Sarasu too hoped that the verdict would be in their favour.

Special public prosecutor Rajesh M. Menon said the case was strong enough to get conviction for the accused. The Special Court for SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, Mannarkkad, completed the trial on March 10 and scheduled the verdict for March 18. As the judgment could not be completed, it was postponed to March 30. The pronouncement was deferred further to April 4.

Madhu, a jobless youth from Kadukamanna hamlet in Attappady, died on February 22, 2018, after he was beaten up by a gang who slapped on him charges of theft. The government appointed a public prosecutor after pressures by Madhu’s family. The prosecutor, however, did not show interest in the case and was later replaced by another special public prosecutor C. Rajendran. Rajesh M. Menon was also appointed additional special public prosecutor.

More than four years after Madhu’s death, the trial began on June 8, 2022. Mr. Rajendran resigned as special public prosecutor as Madhu’s family demanded his replacement. Mr. Menon was appointed special public prosecutor on June 25, 2022.

There were 127 witnesses, out of whom two dozen turned hostile during the trial, which had witnessed several dramatic scenes, including the vision testing of one of the witnesses who turned hostile. There were 16 accused in the case. The chargesheet contained 3,000 pages. Four witnesses who turned hostile during the trial were sacked from their service by the Forest department.