Nilambur murder: Accused slapped with rape charge

Kerala Electricity Minster Aryadan Muhammed’s former personal assistant Biju Nair, who was arrested in connection with the murder of a woman at the Congress block office at Nilambur in Malappuram district a few days ago, has been slapped with additional charge of rape.

The rape charge was incorporated in the final report filed in the court on Tuesday by the special investigation team on the basis of the postmortem report that said that the victim Radha was sexually tortured before she was strangulated to death.

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The post mortem report finalised by two doctors from Calicut Medical College Hospital after visiting the spot of the crime found that the plastic handle of a two-meter-long broom was thrust into the victim’s vagina. Though the post mortem has not confirmed any intercourse, the police have considered the torture technically a case of rape as per the amendment made to Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code (Section 375) following widespread protests in the wake of the 2011 brutal gang rape in New Delhi.

According to the amendment passed by the Parliament in 2012, penetration of any object into the private parts of a woman can be considered as rape. The investigating team had earlier registered the case against Biju and his accomplice Shamsudheen under sections 301 (murder) and 201 (destruction of evidence) under the IPC.

The report, however, does not include information about the two organizations, where the victim worked as a sweeper. One of them was the office of the Power Minister’s son and Nilambur Municipal Chairman Shoukath Aryadan. The relatives of Radha had expressed the possibility of the murder taking place at Shoukath’s office.

Though Shoukath has denied any involvement in the murder, the opposition parties want him to be brought under the purview of their investigation. The relatives have accused the police of misdirecting the probe to save others involved in the murder.

Radha’s brother Bhaskaran has questioned the investigating team’s finding that only the two arrested were involved in the case. He also termed baseless the police theory that Radha had blackmailed Biju.

The police had claimed that Biju had murdered Radha after she threatened to reveal an extra-marital relation he had with another woman. Curiously the police have so far not been able to find any such woman. — news@khaleejtimes.com