Kerala: All 16 accused in Abhimanyu case appear in court after repeated no-shows

All 16 accused in the Abhimanyu murder case appeared before the Ernakulam Principal Sessions Court in Kerala on Thursday (August 13, 2026), following two consecutive hearings they had skipped. The court also read out an additional charge of voluntarily causing hurt (Section 323 of the Indian Penal Code) at the instance of the prosecution. Special Public Prosecutor G. Mohanraj represented the prosecution in the proceedings.

The accused denied the additional charge. Principal Sessions Judge K. K. Balakrishnan then posted the next hearing for August 17. The court's decision comes after the Kerala High Court had earlier directed that the trial be completed within four months, acting on a petition filed by the victim's mother, Bhoopathy.

During the hearings on August 6 and August 10, the court had expressed strong dissatisfaction over the continued absence of the accused. On August 10, it dismissed their petitions seeking permission to be represented through lawyers instead of appearing in person. Among the reasons cited for seeking exemption from personal appearance was an alleged attempt to illegally capture images of the accused.

All 16 accused had pleaded not guilty when charges were initially read out on July 6, 2026. They face charges including murder, causing hurt with dangerous weapons, criminal intimidation, destruction of evidence, rioting, and unlawful assembly.

Previously, the court had dismissed discharge petitions filed by six of the accused, ruling that sufficient grounds existed to proceed with the trial. The plea of the first accused seeking the return of the chargesheet was also rejected.

The case dates back to July 2, 2018, when Abhimanyu, a second-year B.Sc. Chemistry student and SFI unit secretary at Maharaja's College in Kochi, was allegedly fatally stabbed during clashes between activists of the Students' Federation of India (SFI) and the Campus Front, the student wing of the now-banned Popular Front of India (PFI). The clashes reportedly followed disputes over graffiti. His death triggered widespread protests and reignited public debate over political violence on college campuses.

Although the police filed the chargesheet in September 2018, the trial was delayed due to a host of factors. The court's recent strictness reflects an effort to expedite the proceedings in line with the High Court's directive. The next hearing on August 17 is expected to see further progress in the trial, which has been pending for over eight years.