On January 30, 2021, 15 members of the Popular Front of India (PFI) who were found guilty of killing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ranjith Sreenivasan were given the death penalty by the Alappuzha court in Kerala.
Judge Sreedevi V of Additional District Session Court I delivered the decision. All those found guilty were activists for the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) and members of the Popular Front of India (PFI), which was outlawed in 2022. Last week, the court determined their guilt.
Ranjith, age 45, the state secretary of the BJP for OBC Morcha, was fatally slashed on December 19, 2021, in Alappuzha town, in front of his wife, mother, and small daughter.
The murder occurred just hours after K.S. Shan, the state secretary of the SDPI, was slain in Alappuzha on the night of December 18 by a group that was purportedly affiliated with the RSS-BJP.
Ranjith’s wife, Lisha, expressed satisfaction over the verdict. “Our loss is irreparable. However, the court's verdict is a relief. This cannot be seen as a murder. It is the rarest of the rare cases. They encroached into our house and brutally hacked my husband in front of us.
It was mentioned that 14 of the guilty were present in court, according to special prosecutor Prathap G. Padickal, the judge verbally declared that the punishment will also apply to the defendant who was not there that day. When the last prisoner is brought before the court, they will be sentenced. They are presently hospitalized.
All of the defendants were from Alappuzha, primarily from the Mannanchery panchayat, which was the SDPI leader's murderous stronghold at the time. They were charged under sections 120B, 143, 147, 148, and 302 of the Indian Penal Code.
