Another PFI member accused in Srinivasan murder case granted bail by Kerala HC

Kochi, Oct 30 (PTI) The Kerala High Court on Thursday granted bail to another member of the banned organisation Popular Front of India (PFI), who is an accused in the 2022 murder case of former RSS leader Srinivasan in Palakkad district.

A bench of Justices Raja Vijayaraghavan V and K V Jayakumar granted the relief to Rafeeq M S, who is accused of harbouring one of the co-accused who carried out the recce of the targets identified by the PFI.

The order came on Rafeeq's pleas challenging the special NIA court's March 13 order extending his period of detention and the April 29 decision dismissing his bail application.

While allowing his bail plea, the bench said the accused has already undergone pre-trial detention for 10 months and "there is no foreseeable possibility of the trial commencing or concluding in the near future".

"Even if proceedings were to resume, the sheer number of witnesses and extensive volume of documentary and material evidence clearly indicate that the trial would remain pending for several years," it said.

The High Court also said that out of the total 71 accused in the case, 50 were already out on bail, some were absconding and few have not been arrested.

It said that only seven persons, including Rafeeq, were in custody currently, and other accused with almost similar charges were already out on bail.

Therefore, the bench granted him bail subject to him executing a bond for a sum of Rs one lakh with two solvent sureties each for the like sum to the satisfaction of the special NIA court.

The High Court directed the accused not to leave the revenue district of Ernakulam till the trial is over, furnish to the investigating officer his place of residence, appear before him on every Saturday and Wednesday in the morning and use only one mobile number that should be communicated to the investigating officer.

The accused was also directed not to tamper with evidence in the case or try to influence or intimidate witnesses.

Initially, 51 people were arraigned as accused in connection with the murder of S K Srinivasan, a former district leader and office-bearer of RSS, on April 16, 2022 and later more accused were added.

Chargesheets against the accused were filed in two phases in July and December 2022.

The Centre in December 2022 had directed the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to take up and investigate the murder case against the accused.

Srinivasan was attacked by a six-member gang at his motorbike shop in Melamuri in Palakkad on April 16, 2022, less than 24 hours after a PFI leader -- Subair -- was allegedly killed by BJP workers in a village near there. PTI HMP ROH