Opposition Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party hailed the High Court order. (Representational)
Upholding the District and Sessions Court verdict in the sensational murder of former Congress MLA Parimal Saha 36 years ago, a division bench of the Tripura High Court on Friday sentenced 13 persons for a life term.
The 13th accused Satya Das had been acquitted by the West Tripura District and Sessions Court, along with four others. However, the division bench, comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Arindam Lodh, convicted Das after he was found guilty in the murder case.
Parimal Saha, former Congress MLA from Charilam Assembly constituency in western Tripura, and his associate Jitendra Saha were brutally murdered by some Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) workers near Office Tilla, currently under Sepahijala district, on April 7, 1983.
The murder triggered violence and tension in many parts of Tripura, which was then ruled by CPI-M-led Left parties and Nripen Chakraborty was the Chief Minister (1978-1988).
An FIR was registered at the Bishalgarh police station against 24 persons for their alleged involvement in the murder.
In April 2016, the West Tripura District and Sessions court sentenced 12 out of total 17 accused persons to life imprisonment and acquitted five accused due to lack of evidence.
Opposition Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party hailed the High Court order.
"Our government would try to revive and reopen all the previous murder and criminal cases to give due justice to the victims and their families," BJP spokesman Nabendu Bhattacharjee told the media.
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