NIA arrests key accused in Kerala professor’s palm chopping case

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday arrested the key and last absconding accused in a 2010 case wherein a Malayalam professor’s palm was chopped off by members of the now-banned Popular Front of India (PFI) in Kerala.

In a statement, the agency said the accused, Savad, a resident of Ashamannur in Ernakulam district who was on the run for 13 years, was nabbed from Mattannur in Kannur.

“NIA on Wednesday arrested the key and last absconding accused in Kerala’s professor palm chopping case to bring its investigations in the horrendous incident to a successful culmination. Savad, who had been on the run for the last 13 years and was carrying a reward of ₹10 lakh for his arrest, was nabbed from Mattannur, Kannur (Kerala) following sustained efforts,” the statement said.

Savad, who is the first accused in the case, was produced before an NIA court in Kochi later in the day and subsequently remanded in judicial custody till January 22.

On July 4, 2010, TJ Joseph, a former head of Malayalam department of Newman College in Thodupuzha in Idukki district, was attacked by a group of PFI workers in Muvattupuzha in Ernakulam district. The PFI members chopped off Joseph’s right palm and stabbed his left leg with a hatchet for allegedly using the name of Prophet Mohammed in a blasphemous manner in an internal exam question paper. Joseph was later terminated from the college for hurting religious sentiments.

Also Read | Three get life term in Kerala professor’s palm chopping case

Of the 42 accused who faced trial, 19 were convicted for various offences in connection with the case. Of the 19, three were convicted for life and 16 awarded prison terms ranging from two to eight years. The remaining 23 people were acquitted in the case.

According to investigators, Savad chopped off the professor’s palm with a machete. After the incident, he reportedly flew to Bengaluru and other parts of the country before escaping to the Middle East.

In its statement, NIA said Savad “was chargesheeted on 10th January, 2011 in the case, one of the earliest such incidents in India reflecting the ideology of violent extremism being pursued by the PFI.

The federal agency also said “all the accused in the case were either leaders or activists/cadres of the now banned PFI and Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), and were actively involved in the criminal conspiracy relating to the lethal attack on Professor T. J. Joseph at Muvattupuzha”.

Reacting to the development, Joseph said that for him, Savad is not the key accused but those who conspired to attack him.

“But as a citizen, as someone who respects the legal system, an accused being arrested after 13 years is an admirable thing. He may be the first or key accused for investigators, but in my heart, he is not the first accused. I believe that the key accused are those who decided to attack me and sent the men who eventually harmed me. They have not been included in this case,” he told reporters.

People aware of the details said Savad was apprehended from a rented house in Beram ward of Mattannur municipality, where he lived under the name of ‘Shahjahan’. The local police were not informed about the NIA operation to nab him, they added.

“He said his name was Shahjahan and that he was a carpenter. He was living here with his wife and two children for over two years now. He looks quite different from the photos being shown in the media 13 years ago. He behaved quite nicely with us,” Noufal, a resident of the locality, said.

The trial in the case was held in two phases. In the first phase in 2015, 31 people were examined following which 13 were convicted. While 10 were awarded prison terms of eight years each for offences under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), Explosive Substances Act and Indian Penal Code, three were found guilty for harbouring the offenders and awarded two years of jail. NIA has petitioned the Kerala high court to enhance the punishment of all the convicts in the first phase and examine the acquittal of the remaining.

In July last year, three convicts were awarded life imprisonment and other three were sentenced to three years of imprisonment.

The PFI and its eight affiliate organisations were banned under the UAPA on September 28, 2022, after a nationwide crackdown by NIA and Enforcement Directorate (ED) led to arrests and recovery of purported incriminating documents from offices and residences of the outfit’s office bearers.

The Centre alleged that PFI, its associates or affiliates and fronts were involved in violent terrorist activities with the intent to create a reign of terror in the country, thereby endangering the security and public order of the state.