Kochi, February 9 The Kerala High Court on Monday acquitted nine members of the NDF who had earlier been convicted by a district court in Kannur in connection with the murder of a CPI(M) leader.
The National Development Front is said to have later evolved into the Popular Front of India (PFI), which was subsequently banned by the Union government for its alleged anti-national activities.
A Division Bench comprising Justices Jayasankaran Nambiar and Jobin Sebastian overturned the life sentences imposed by the Thalassery Additional District Court-III and acquitted all the accused in the case relating to the murder of CPI(M) branch secretary Naroth Dileep at Vilakkode Chakkad in Kannur district in 2008.
Those acquitted are P K Latheef, U K Siddique, U K Faisal, V K Unais, P P Faisal, Mohammed Basheer, Yakub, P K Mohammed Farooq and Paneri Abdul Gafur.
The trial court had found the accused guilty and sentenced them to life imprisonment in the case relating to the murder of Naroth Dileep, who was hacked to death on August 24, 2008.
Allowing the appeals, the High Court overturned the conviction and sentences imposed by the trial court and ordered the acquittal of all nine accused.
"In this case, after considering the evidence presented by the prosecution, this court finds that there is no convincing or reliable evidence to prove the guilt of the accused beyond a reasonable doubt. Therefore, the serious shortcomings in the investigation cannot be ignored," the court observed.
