KOCHI: The High Court on Tuesday came down heavily on the state government and the police in connection with the killing of Mattannur Block Youth Congress secretary S.P. Shuhaib. Severely criticising the way the investigation has been proceeding since the killing, the court observed that the failure to recover the weapons even 15 days after the incident was a failure of the investigation. The court made the observation on a petition filed by the parents of Shuhaib seeking a CBI probe into the killing. The case was posted for next hearing on March 6.
The counsel for the CBI has sought seven days’ time to inform the court about the willingness of the agency to take over the investigation. The court was not happy with the government position that the investigation by the state police was satisfactory. Clearly expressing its unhappiness, the court displayed a picture showing the body of Shuhaib and pointed out that the weapons were not recovered. The court also asked on what basis the police chief had talked about ‘spies’ in the police department in the district. The government counsel stated that the probe was in its preliminary stage and that at this point of time there was no need for another agency for investigation.
He also said that the counsel for the petitioner had been making a political speech. The court then asked the CBI to state its opinion and its counsel said it would intimate the court its decision before the next hearing. Earlier, counsel for the parents of Shuhaib had said that the accused in the case had close connections with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and CPM Kannur district secretary P. Jayarajan. He also said that pictures of the killers with Mr Pinarayi Vijayan and Mr Jayarajan were widely circulated on the social media. Local MLA E.P. Jayarajan has not even condemned the incident so far. The petitioner said a CBI probe was essential to unearth the criminal conspiracy behind the murder and the financial resources used for its execution.
