The death of yet another accused in the Walayar case has brought the focus on the ongoing re-investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the death of two minor girls.
M. Madhu, 33, alias Kutty Madhu, the fourth accused in the Walayar case, was found hanging in an old factory building at Binanipuram, near Aluva, on Wednesday. He is the third person connected with the case who was found dead in a similar fashion.
His body was taken to his home at Walayar on Thursday after a post-mortem examination. The police said they were investigating his death.
Mother’s charge
Madhu’s death has infused energy as well as frustration into the groups involved in the case and its re-investigation. The mother of the two minor victims of the case alleged here on Thursday that Madhu’s death was suspected to be a murder. She said those trying to scuttle the case were behind his death. She complained to the CBI team here on Thursday demanding that all the documents and the mobile phones used by Madhu be seized and examined.
She demanded that the CBI investigate the deaths of Madhu and Pradeep Kumar, and protect the other accused in the case from potential dangers. She said by eliminating the accused, the real culprits were trying to destroy the “speaking evidence” in the case.
Other deaths
Pradeep Kumar from Cherthala, another accused in the case, was found hanging in November 2020. John Praveen from Attappallam, who had been questioned by the police during the initial phase of the case, too was found hanging.
It was in 2017 that a 13-year-old girl and her nine-year-old sister were found dead in their house at Attappallam, near Walayar, in mysterious circumstances. Both were found hanging from a rafter on different dates. While the 13-year-old girl was found dead on January 7, 2017, her younger sibling was found hanging from the same rafter in their kitchen on March 4, 2017.
There were five accused in the case. Two of them died, and the remaining three are facing charges. One of them was a minor during the incident.
The police’s finding that the girls committed suicide following mental and physical abuses helped the accused walk away scot-free from the POCSO court here in 2019. But the exoneration triggered anger and protest, prompting the High Court to quash the verdict and order a re-investigation by the CBI.
The POCSO court here rejected the chargesheet filed by the first CBI team, saying that it was the “carbon copy” of the police findings. Following the court order, a new CBI team is currently re-investigating the case.
Pressure was apparently mounting on the accused after the court permitted the CBI to send the mobile phones of the accused for scientific examination. The court will take a decision on a CBI request for a lie detection test in a few days.
