Palakkad: The verdict in the sensational Madhu lynching case that rocked Kerala in early 2018 will be delivered on March 30 by a Mannarkkad-based special court for trying offences under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Tribal youngster Madhu, a native of Attappadi here, was allegedly beaten to death by a group of men on suspicion of theft on February 22, 2018.
Around 16 people are named in the chargesheet, say reports.
The proceedings at the special court which is hearing the case had kicked-off in April 2022. Last October the court had granted bail to 11 accused with strict conditions.
Madhu, a tribal youth from Chindakki hamlet near Mukkali in Attappady, was captured from a cave in the forest and apparently beaten up by a group of men on charges of alleged theft on the fateful day.
They handed him over to the police, but Madhu died on the way to the hospital. The cause of the death was internal injuries he suffered from the beating.
Police arrested the accused two days after the incident following an uproar over Madhu’s death. Photographs and videos of the tribal youth in the custody of a group of people were widely circulated on social media.
All the 16 accused, however, secured conditional bail from the Kerala High Court on May 30, 2018. In August the trial court cancelled the bail of the 12 accused to prevent them from influencing the witnesses. The Kerala High Court upheld the decision to cancel the bail of 11 of the accused while setting aside the order on one of the accused.
The trial in the case saw many witnesses turning hostile. So far, 27 prosecution witnesses have turned hostile leaving questions over the fate of the case.
