The Supreme Court in New Delhi was clear this week that the TP Chandrasekharan murder case is a serious homicide.
In a Monday hearing, the bench asked why bail could be handed out “in haste” without first reviewing the full trial records.
The court said it will first examine the trial‑court documents and witness statements before it even considers a bail request.
It also declined to grant interim bail to the petitioner, Jyothi Babu, the accused in the 2012 killing of former Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP) leader TP Chandrasekharan.
Within 15 days, officials must hand over all case materials—deposition records, witness statements and other trial documents—to the Supreme Court.
Only after this will the matter be reopened for hearing.
The bail petition comes from Jyothi Babu, one of the 12 men charged with Chandrasekharan’s murder.
Last year, the Kerala High Court convicted them of “barbaric” political murder and sentenced each to rigorous life imprisonment.
The accused were either CPI(M) activists or people allegedly hired by the party after Chandrasekharan left CPI(M) to start his own party.
The case has spurred heated arguments in the Supreme Court, with the victim’s widow, former MP K.K. Rema (now a state MLA), strongly opposing any bail.
Rema’s lawyer said the state government had been “playing hide‑and‑seek” by not filing a proper reply to the bail petition.
He warned that granting bail in such a grave political murder would undermine public faith in justice.
Jyothi Babu’s lawyer rebuked the accusation, accusing Rema’s side of “playing to the gallery” and challenging the state to prove its “game”.
The government’s counsel called Rema’s claims exaggerated and politically motivated.
In her affidavit to the Supreme Court, Rema argued that the accused had already received disproportionate leniency earlier.
She warned that more concessions could erode public trust and that bail for Babu would send a dangerous, demoralizing message.
Babu claimed worsening health and sought bail on medical grounds.
The court clarified that such arguments could not be considered without first scrutinizing the complete trial record.
The case will resume after the requested documents are filed.
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