MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has dismissed a State appeal against the acquittal of Puthiya Tamizhagam president K. Krishnasamy, former secretary S. Krishnakanthan Yadav and a Christian priest Pal Rathnasamy from the Manjolai murder case.

However, a Division Bench of Justices M. Chockalingam and P.R. Shivakumar confirmed the life sentence imposed on eight convicts — R. Joseph, 40, J. Jayapal, 55, K. Samuel, 37, M. Veluchamy, 32, M. Chinnasamy, 45, K. Manivannan, 29 and S. Robert, 45 — in the case.

The case dates back to October 25, 1998 when Anthony Muthu, supervisor of Manjolai estate in Tirunelveli district, was hacked to death for turning down the strike call given by some of the employees. Though the police claimed that the murder was executed as per a conspiracy hatched under the leadership of Dr. Krishnasamy, the Tirunelveli Additional Sessions Court acquitted him and two others of all charges on September 1, 2004.

Aggrieved against the trial court verdict, both the prosecution as well as the convicts preferred separate appeals before the Madurai Bench. Additional Public Prosecutor P.N. Pandidurai contended that the trial court had erroneously acquitted three of them without appreciating the materials on record.

Declining to agree with the prosecutor, the Division Bench said: "In the absence of any direct evidence or proved circumstances from which the conspiracy could be inferred, the court cannot hold that A9 to A11 participated in the conspiracy and hence the appeal preferred by the State has to be dismissed naturally."

Prosecution proved case

The Bench, nevertheless, said the prosecution had proved the case against eight other accused and so the punishment imposed on them need not be disturbed.

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