Emotional note written by Abhimanyu produced in court in murder case

An extremely emotional moment was witnessed on Thursday during the hearing of the Abhimanyu murder case in the Ernakulam Principal Sessions Court. According to a report by The Hindu, a short note, allegedly written by the deceased Abhimanyu, was produced in court by the prosecution. In this note, he had expressed gratitude towards a classmate who had provided him with food.

Written in black ink on a torn piece of notebook paper, the note read, “Today there was only hunger. At least, I have received a stomach full of food. Thank you very much for giving enough food to fill my stomach.” The prosecution produced this note to demonstrate that Abhimanyu continued his academic and organisational activities despite struggling with hunger.

This note came to light when a former office-bearer of the college's Kerala Students Union (KSU) gave testimony in 2018. The witness identified the note as he had saved a photograph of it on his mobile phone. The witness told the court that Abhimanyu had placed this note on the plate of the student who had fed him.

The same witness further stated that on the tragic night of the murder, the first accused, Muhammed, had called him and asked him to move his motorcycle parked near the college gate. The witness stated that he remained in deep shock for nearly a year following Abhimanyu's murder. According to him, while he was in college, there were cordial relations with other student organisations, including the Students Federation of India (SFI), and there were no major disputes.

According to the witness, Abhimanyu also had friendly relations with members of all student organisations. He gave an example that Abhimanyu was the first person to participate in a football penalty shoot-out organised by the KSU. Additionally, he identified and confirmed the authenticity of the voice messages he had sent to his friends after informing them about Abhimanyu's murder.

Abhimanyu was a second-year BSc Chemistry student and the secretary of the SFI college unit. On July 2, 2018, he was murdered with a knife during a clash following a dispute over graffiti (wall writing) between workers of the SFI and Campus Front (the student wing of the Popular Front of India). This murder led to widespread protests and reignited discussions regarding political violence on college campuses.

Acting on a petition filed by Abhimanyu's mother, Bhoopathi, the Kerala High Court had directed in July that this case be completed within four months. Since October 15, the hearing of this case has been proceeding without any hindrance in the Ernakulam Principal Sessions Court. The trial is being presided over by Principal Sessions Judge K.K. Balakrishnan, while G. Mohanraj is appearing as the Special Public Prosecutor.