The NIA informed the Special Court in Ernakulam on Thursday that the custodial interrogation of Savad, who allegedly severed the professor’s right palm, exposed a network of alleged PFI operatives who provided shelter and employment to him in Tamil Nadu and Kerala while he was on the run. The agency stated that further investigation is necessary to secure additional scientific evidence and fully ascertain the role of other individuals in the conspiracy. The court accepted the request from the NIA’s Kochi unit.
As detailed in the NIA chargesheet, the accused attacked Joseph, former Malayalam professor at Newman College, Thodupuzha, on July 4, 2010. The chargesheet noted that Savad chopped off the victim’s right palm and discarded it nearby as part of executing their radical belief, reportedly uttering that “This hand that insults Islam will not be used in future.”
Savad was finally arrested by the NIA on January 10, 2024, in Kannur, where he was living under the pseudonym Shajahan, after nearly 14 years in hiding.
The NIA had originally filed a chargesheet against 27 accused under various sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Indian Penal Code. The NIA Special Court convicted 19 accused in two phases in 2015 and 2023. The case against Savad was split and refiled as he was absconding; his trial and that of another accused, Shaffer, remain pending.
In its latest submission, the NIA stated that post-arrest investigation revealed that PFI cadre Shaffer C willfully arranged shelter and provided logistics support to Savad in Kannur from 2020 until his arrest. Shaffer has been arraigned as the 55th accused and remanded in judicial custody. Savad’s interrogation further revealed that PFI cadre/leaders had arranged shelter and secured employment for him in Pandrimalai, Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, and in Kannur. (TNIE)
For more details: Navamalayalam.com
