Lagatar24 Desk
Kochi, July 12: A special court of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Kochi has convicted six people in the sensational case of chopping off the hand of a Kerala college professor in 2010. All the convicts are alleged members of the banned radical Islamic organization Popular Front of India (PFI).
Special NIA court judge Anil K Bhaskar convicted them for murder, conspiracy to commit murder and other offences under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in the second phase of the trial. Some of these accused have also been convicted under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Five other accused have been acquitted in this case.
In the first phase of the trial, 31 accused faced trial, out of which 10 were convicted by the court in April 2015 under the UAPA as well as the Explosive Substances Act and the IPC. Apart from this, the court also convicted three others for giving shelter to the accused. The court had then acquitted 18 others in the case. Professor T J Joseph of Newman College at Thodupuzha in Idukki district had his right hand chopped off by alleged members of the currently banned Islamic outfit PFI on July 4, 2010.
The attack took place when he (professor) was returning home with his family from a church at Moovattupuzha in Ernakulam district after Sunday prayers. The assailants, who were in a group of seven people, pulled the professor out of the vehicle and assaulted him and chopped off his right hand. Sawad, the main accused in the incident, is still absconding. According to the police, who initially investigated the case, the accused wanted to kill Joseph over his derogatory religious remarks while preparing the question paper for the semester examination of B.Com at Newman College.
