Kochi, August 4: The Kerala High Court has granted the Ernakulam Principal Sessions Court a final deadline of four months to complete the trial in the 2018 murder case of SFI leader Abhimanyu. The court made it clear that no further extensions would be permitted.
Justice Kausar Edappagath’s bench extended the timeline after the trial court informed the High Court that the proceedings could not be completed within the previously set timeframe. The court directed that the trial must be concluded within the newly granted period without fail.
This order came in response to two petitions: one from the Principal Sessions Judge requesting additional time to complete the trial, and another from Abhimanyu’s mother, who sought a swift resolution to the long-pending case.
Earlier this year, on January 24, the High Court had noted the significant delays in the case and instructed the Sessions Court to complete the trial within nine months. This directive was based on a petition filed by Abhimanyu’s mother in 2024, highlighting that the trial had not commenced years after the charge sheet was filed.
Abhimanyu, a 21-year-old student at Maharaja College in Ernakulam, was fatally stabbed during a clash on the college campus on July 1, 2018. Four other SFI activists were also injured in the attack.
According to the prosecution, the accused, allegedly linked to the now-banned ‘Campus Front,’ attacked students over a dispute regarding poster placements on campus. The police registered a case against the accused for murder, criminal conspiracy, rioting, and unlawful assembly.
The Ernakulam Central Police filed the charge sheet in September 2018, after which the case was transferred to the Principal Sessions Court. The trial has been pending for over seven years, prompting repeated interventions from the High Court.
With Tuesday’s order, the High Court has indicated that further delays are unacceptable. It has effectively set a final deadline to conclude one of Kerala’s most high-profile campus murder trials.
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