RSS men found guilty in girl maiming case

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RSS men found guilty in girl maiming case
DH News Service, Thiruvananthapuram:

For Asna, a standard nine student who lost her right leg eight years ago in a bomb attack in the
political killing fields of Kannur district, some consolation arrived in the form of a court verdict on
Children’s Day. The Additional District Sessions court in Thalassery on Friday convicted 13 BJP-RSS workers for the murderous attempt on her in 2000. The verdict will be declared on Monday. Daughter of a teashop owner, six-year-old Asna was playing in front of her house in her village in September 2000 when a bomb thrown by an RSS worker fell near her. She lost her right leg in the attack and she has been walking on a Jaipur foot ever since. The bomb was hurled during a clash between RSS and CPM workers following allegations of snatching of ballot boxes in a local panchayat election. The court found the BJP-RSS workers guilty on various counts, including bomb-making and attempted murder. One of the defendants was killed just a few days ago when the bombs that were either being made or being shifted went off accidentally. “This verdict will be a deterrent for all those who are concerned about the bomb culture and political killings in Kannur,’’ said prosecutor C K Sreedharan said.

Two years ago, CPM workers who butchered a primary schoolteacher in front of his students in a classroom were let off by the court for want of evidence. The accused later declared in public that they were ready to commit the crime again against the “class enemies”. At least 200 men have lost their lives in revenge killings between the CPM and the BJP-RSS combine in the district during the past three decades.