KANNUR: The additional sessions court in Kerala's Thalassery sentenced Tuesday nine BJP-RSS members to life imprisonment for the murder of 26-year-old DYFI activist Rijith at Kannapuram in Kannur district on Oct 10, 2005.
Additional sessions judge Ruby K Jose also imposed a fine of Rs 1.1 lakh on the nine men convicted Saturday, marking the conclusion of a 19-year-long trial. Those convicted are VV Sudhakaran, 56; KT Jayesh, 39; CP Renjith; PP Ajeendran, 50; IV Anil Kumar, 51; PP Rajesh, 46; VV Sreekanth, 46; VV Sreejith, 42; and TV Bhaskaran, 66. The tenth accused Ajesh died in a road accident before the trial concluded.
Rijith was killed following a violent clash over the opening of an RSS branch.
According to the prosecution, the political dispute escalated into a brutal attack near a temple, where Rijith and his friends were ambushed by the accused wielding swords and knives. Rijith died of his wounds en route to the hospital.
Police registered a case based on a complaint by KV Nikesh, who too was wounded in the attack. Rijith's mother Janaki and sister Sreeja were not happy with the verdict, saying they hoped for the death penalty.