The Kasaragod Sessions Court granted bail to all the accused, including Kerala’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president K. Surendran, in the Manjeswaram election bribery case, on October 25.
While trial proceedings had earlier commenced in the case, the accused, including Mr. Surendran, did not appear in court. The defendants had filed a discharge petition claiming that the case is fabricated and without merit.
The court had earlier mandated the presence of the defendants, including Mr. Surendran, while reviewing the petition seeking to exclude them from the case. The prosecution countered this, stating that the court had previously issued summons to the accused and that the discharge petition should only be considered if the accused were present and posted bail.
Accepting this argument, the defendants were summoned to appear in person on October 25.
This marks Mr. Surendran’s first appearance in court in the case. Notably, all the defendants and the victim, K. Sundara, were present in court on the day.
According to the chargesheet filed by the Badiadka police, the case pertains to allegations that Mr. Sundara, who was nominated by the BSP as an alternative candidate in the Manjeswaram constituency in the 2021 Assembly elections, was lured, threatened to withdraw his nomination, and offered a bribe of ₹2.5 lakh along with a mobile phone.
Subsequently, the District Crime Branch took over the investigation and a special team, headed by Crime Branch DySP A. Satish Kumar, completed the inquiry and submitted the chargesheet to the court.
Apart from Mr. Surendran, the other accused in the case are Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha’s former State treasurer Sunil Naik, former BJP district president K.K. Balakrishna Shetty, leaders Suresh Naik, K. Manikanda Rai, and Lokesh Nonda.
Further hearings in the case will be held on November 15, 2023.
