CPI(M) men surrender in Kerala murder case

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Two CPI(M) workers surrendered before the police on Sunday in connection with Youth Congress leader M Shuhaib’s murder, but the Congress cried foul, saying they were ‘dummy killers’ intended to protect real culprits.

Aakash Thillangeri and Rijin Raj, two active workers of the party, went to a police station near Mattanoor with some local leaders and surrendered, said a police officer. Their surrender has exposed the CPI(M) leadership’s repeated claim that the party had no role in the murder. On February 11, a four-member gang stabbed Shuhaib, 29, after hurling bombs at him. He succumbed to his injuries a day later.

“We really doubt their role in the murder. It seems a drama enacted by the party to save its face. Real killers are still roaming around and police dread to touch them due to political patronage,” said Congress leader K Sudhakaran. The victim’s father shared similar concerns.

MLA’S REMARK ON 2012 MURDER TRIGGERS ROW

CPI(M) legislator AN Shamseer landed the party in trouble when he ‘admitted’ to its role in the killing of Muslim League worker Arayil Shukoor in 2012.

In a TV debate on Friday night, the MLA from Thalasserry said, “Shukoor’s was not a planned murder. He was attacked by a mob. That was crowd psychology. Neither we justified it nor denied any connection in the killing.” However, he clarified later that his comment was a “slip of the tongue” and he was wrongly quoted by the media.