Abhimanyu murder trial: Eyewitnesses struggle to distinguish 16 accused in similar attire, hairstyles

Kochi: As the controversy over whether the custodial haircut of Kochi Mini Cooper crash accused Suhail Sajeev could hamper witness identification continues to be a debate, changes in the appearances of the accused in the controversial 2018 Abhimanyu murder case appear to have already given the eyewitnesses a tough time.

Witnesses have raised concerns, with one of them telling the Principal Sessions Court in Ernakulam that the similar attire, hairstyles and altered appearances of the 16 accused are making it difficult to distinguish individual perpetrators.

According to the prosecution, on Saturday, one eyewitness explicitly told the court that he could no longer distinguish individual roles despite remembering the accused being present at the scene. The court recorded his statement verbatim and warned the accused against further significant changes in their appearance, Special Public Prosecutor G Mohanraj.

The development came on the third consecutive day that the accused appeared in matching white shirts and dhotis, with similar hairstyles and facial grooming. They had also entered the courtroom wearing caps and face masks before Principal Sessions Judge K K Balakrishnan directed them to remove the headgear and masks.

While the accused's similar appearance drew attention when the trial began, Saturday’s proceedings brought the identification concerns into sharper focus.

“It created difficulty. One witness stated so because he was unable to identify them, and he put that on record before the court,” Mohanraj said.

According to the prosecutor, the witness told the court that the accused had changed their appearances significantly since the incident, including shaving off beards and undergoing changes in weight and other identifying features.

The witness reportedly highlighted the difficulty of distinguishing individual perpetrators even though he remembered them being present at the scene.

“For instance, one witness said: ‘All of them were present there, but who did what cannot be identified now,’” Mohanraj said.

The court recorded the statement as made and warned that further significant changes in appearance could invite strict action, the prosecutor said.

Seven eyewitnesses testify
The prosecution completed the chief examination of seven eyewitnesses on Saturday. Of the 156 witnesses in the case, only seven are direct eyewitnesses to the crime.

The fourth witness identified all 16 accused in the dock, while the fifth, sixth and seventh identified key accused in the case.

The witnesses also identified material evidence relating to the July 2, 2018, incident at Maharaja’s College in Ernakulam. A clash between Campus Front of India (CFI) workers and Students’ Federation of India (SFI) members over graffiti on a campus wall culminated in the fatal stabbing of 20-year-old Abhimanyu.

Photographs of the college wall and the CFI graffiti, the blunt weapon allegedly used in the attack, and Abhimanyu’s blood-stained clothes were exhibited in the courtroom and confirmed by the fourth witness.

The trial is proceeding on a fast-track schedule after the Kerala High Court directed its completion within four months following a petition by Abhimanyu’s mother, Bhoopathy.

The defence is scheduled to cross-examine the seven eyewitnesses on October 22.