The Judicial First Class Magistrate Court in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday ordered a fresh investigation against CPM leader EP Jayarajan over allegations of assaulting Youth Congress functionaries during an in-flight protest against then Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The court rejected the police report which had concluded that no case could be registered against Jayarajan.
In a major legal setback for the senior CPM leader, the court explicitly rejected the Valiyathura police report, which had previously given Jayarajan a clean chit and recommended closing the case due to a lack of evidence. The court directed the police to conduct a detailed re-investigation, and review crucial evidence, including CCTV footage, before submitting a fresh report.
The complaint was filed by Youth Congress fuctionaries, including Farseen Majeed, who alleged that Jayarajan assaulted them when they protested against the Chief Minister aboard an IndiGo flight in 2022.
The case dates back to June 13, 2022, when Youth Congress workers boarded an IndiGo flight from Kannur to Thiruvananthapuram. Upon landing, the workers staged a slogan-shouting protest against then Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan over gold smuggling allegations. The activists alleged that EP Jayarajan violently pushed and manhandled them inside the aircraft aisle
Responding to the fresh probe order, EP Jayarajan stated that he would examine the court’s detailed observations. He maintained that his actions were not an assault but an act of self-defense to protect the Chief Minister from individuals behaving like “terrorists”.