KANNUR: In a landmark judgment, the Thalassery Additional Sessions Court has sentenced nine RSS and BJP activists to life imprisonment for the 2005 murder of DYFI activist Rijith in Kannur’s Kannapuram. Judge Ruby K Jose found all accused guilty of murder, marking the end of a prolonged legal battle that spanned nearly two decades.

Rijith, a member of the CPM’s Kannapuram branch and an active worker of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), was brutally hacked to death on October 3, 2005, near the Thachankandi temple. The murder followed escalating tensions over the establishment of an RSS branch in the area.

On the evening of the murder, Rijith and three of his friends—DYFI activists K V Nikesh, R S Vikas, and K N Vamal—were returning from work when they were ambushed near the temple. While Rijith succumbed to his injuries, the others sustained severe wounds. Investigations revealed that the attack was premeditated and rooted in the heated dispute between RSS and CPM workers.

The trial originally named ten accused, all affiliated with the RSS and BJP. However, the third accused, Ajesh, passed away in a car accident during the proceedings. The remaining nine, identified as V V Sudhakaran, K T Jayesh, C P Ranjith, P P Ajeendran, I V Anil, V V Srikanth, V V Sreejith, P P Rajesh, and T V Bhaskaran, were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment.

The case was based on a complaint filed by Nikesh, one of the survivors of the attack. A police investigation, led by then Valapattanam Circle Inspector T P Premarajan, concluded that the attack was linked to the power struggle over opening an RSS office near the temple.

Rijith’s family, including his mother Janaki and sister Sreeja, were present in court for the verdict. They expressed mixed emotions, reflecting on their grief and the long-delayed justice.