HC acquits 13 in Mathikulam Aneesh murder case

KOCHI: A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court has quashed the life term imprisonment awarded to the 13 accused in the murder case of Mathikulam Aneesh of Kodungalloor.The sentence awarded by the Thrissur Sessions Court to  Satheesan alias Golden Satheesan, Ramesh, Sudeep, Sujith, Joshy, Bhaskaran, Bijoy alias Joy, Shaji alias Black Shaji, Sooryankuttan, Sathyan alias Punjabi Sathyan, Sivakumar alias Pazhamchakka Sivan, Kishore alias Kuttapan Dada, Manoj and Arun was quashed by the division bench comprising V Ramkumar and P Q Barkath Ali.The incident took place on June 20,2006. The prosecution case was that the accused murdered Aneesh due to personal grudge.The counsel for the accused argued that the statement of Subeesh, an eyewitness  presented by the prosecution was not credible.The court refused to accept the statement of Shijil,the first witness,who is also the brother of murdered  Aneesh. Shijil and Aneesh were accused in the sensational case related to the murder of Velichapad Shine and Shijil is undergoing a lifeterm imprisonment in that case.