Maoist killing: Kerala police ex-chief’s plea dismissed

NEW DELHI - The Supreme Court Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit challenging the trial of former Kerala police chief B. Vijayan for his alleged role in killing Maoist leader A. Varghese in 1970 in a staged gun battle.

While dismissing Vijayan’s plea, a bench of Justice P. Sathasivam, however, allowed the 85-year-old ex-police chief to approach designated Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court in his state to seek exemption from personal appearance during the trial.

Vijayan had moved the apex court against framing of charges by the designated CBI court for his alleged role in the staged killing of the Naxalite leader.

The CBI had earlier indicted Vijayan on the basis of the confessions of police constable Ramachandran Nair, who had deposed that he carried out the killing on the orders of his superior officers, including Vijayan, who was then a deputy inspector general in the state.

Though the state police had claimed that Varghese had died 40 years ago in a gun battle with the police at Thirunelli in Wynad district, the CBI, which had probed the case, had told the trial court that he was murdered by the police personnel.

Wynad district was the hotbed of Maoist activities and Varghese was accused in many Naxal attacks, especially on police stations, and had been evading arrest.

The CBI had told the trial court that Varghese was arrested, brought to CRPF camp at Thirunelli and shot dead at point blank range in a premeditated act by the police.

The state police, however, have been insisting that Varghese died in a police encounter which was confirmed by the Kozhikode Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) who conducted the autopsy.

The Mananthavady police, in whose jurisdiction Thirunelli falls, had closed the case as police ‘encounter’.

After a lapse of 29 years, in 1999, Ramachandran Nair, who had retired from service, approached the Kerala High Court with a prayer seeking inquiry into the death of Varghese, which, according to him, was not a police encounter but was instigated allegedly by Vijayan and Inspector General of police K. Lakshmana.

Nair had filed an affidavit in the court to the effect that he shot Varghese, who was blindfolded and tied to a tree. He fired only one bullet and Varghese died.