The Thiruvananthapuram additional sessions court handed down life imprisonment to two individuals on Friday, convicting them for the murder of former radio jockey Rajesh. A fine of Rs 3 lakh was imposed on them.
Muhammed Salih, the second accused, and Appunni, the third accused, were found guilty in the murder case. However, accused numbers 4 to 12 were acquitted by the court. The first accused, Abdul Sathar, remains untraced. Allegedly, Sathar had “given a contract” to have Rajesh killed, suspecting an affair between the radio jockey and his wife.
Rajesh, son of Radhakrishna Kurup and Vasantha Kumari of Asha Nivas, Padinjattela, Madavoor, was murdered in his recording studio at Madavoor Junction at 2.30 am on March 27, 2018. During the incident, Rajesh’s friend Kuttan was also attacked and sustained injuries to his shoulder and arm.
Rajesh had been an RJ for about a decade in an Indian private channel before working in Qatar. He returned to Madavoor in May 2017, setting up a recording studio and joining a folksong group. At the time of his murder, his wife Rohini was eight months pregnant.
The court did not file a case against Rajesh’s friend Kuttan, who turned hostile during the trial but accepted his initial statement. However, the court registered a case against prosecution witness Manoj, responsible for arranging the vehicles used in the crime.
Various individuals were acquitted by the court, including K Tansir, Sanu Santhosh, A Yaseen, S Swathy Santhosh alias Sphadikam, J Aby John, Sumith (married to third accused Appunni’s sister), Sumith’s wife Bhagyasree, Sybella Bonnie, and Shijina Shihab.
The accused faced charges under IPC Sections 201, 449, 326, and 302, relating to destruction of evidence, criminal trespassing, grievous hurt, and murder respectively.
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