Kozhikode: The daughter of the late CPM leader P K Kunjananthan, who was the 13th accused in the murder of RMP leader T P Chandrasekharan, rubbished former Muslim League MLA K M Shaji's claim of her father's death being shrouded in mystery. Shabna Manoharan said Shaji's accusation was nothing but an election gimmick. She also alleged that it was the UDF leaders who took Kunjananthan's life.

"There is no mystery over Kunjananthan's death. My father died of an acute mouth ulcer. The UDF government deliberately delayed his treatment, causing his condition to worsen. By the time LDF came to power, the disease had reached its peak. Allegations were raised then that it was the UDF that killed him," said Shabna. 

Shaji had earlier alleged that the person who was the only link to reach the leaders behind the TP murder died of food poisoning. "In all political killings in Kannur, the killers have been murdered when there is fear of secrets being leaked. All three accused in the Fazal murder case were killed. A few are assigned to kill someone. They get the job done and come back. When there is a threat of the truth being exposed, those who committed the crime are done away with," said Shaji.

Kunjananthan died in June 2020, while serving time in jail for his role in the TP murder case. He was undergoing treatment at Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital for his illness. Even when imprisoned, he was elected to the party's area committee. The CPM leadership had taken the stand that Kunjananthan had no role in the murder of Chandrasekharan.

On Monday (February 19), the Kerala high Court  dismissed the appeal filed by the the convicts of RMP leader murder case and upheld the quantum of punishment awarded by a lower court.

The high court also nullified the acquittal of two accused - CPM leader K K Krishnan and Jyothi Babu. The court asked the duo to face trial in the case. On Wednesday, they surrendered before a special court at Marad in Kozhikode.