The two murders of Popular Front of India leader Subair and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh leader SK Srinivasan within a span of 24 hours in Kerala's Palakkad were part of a pre-planned conspiracy, according to Kerala Police.
Additional Director General (Law and Order) Vijay Sakhare told reporters on Sunday, "There is a conspiracy behind both murders. We will find out who is behind it. The killers were only foot soldiers."
Sakhare reached Palakkad after 45-year-old Srinivasan's murder on Saturday. Speaking to reporters, he refuted the allegation that the police failed to prevent the RSS leader's murder despite there being a possibility of retaliation after the killing of PFI leader Subair on Friday. He said it was "very very difficult" to prevent a planned murder and both the killings were "well planned".
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Sakhare told PTI that it cannot be said whether the killings, especially that of the PFI leader, were politically motivated but the murder of the RSS leader is believed to be a retaliatory killing. He further said that while no one has been arrested in connection with the two cases, several suspects were in custody of the police, who were questioning them, and based on the outcome of the interrogations, arrests would be made.
The ADG also said that two Special Investigation Teams (SITs) have been constituted to probe the murders and the police has some good clues and leads in the cases.
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Several schemes and plans have been formulated to prevent any further such incidents in the district and these would be implemented during the day, according to Sakhare.
Srinivasan was attacked by six bike-borne men at his shop in Melamuri area of the district.
PFI's Subair was hacked to death at Elappully area in the district while he was returning home along with his father after offering prayers in a mosque on Friday afternoon.
A local RSS leader, Sanjith, was murdered in the same area, five months ago allegedly by SDPI workers.
PFI on Friday had alleged that Subair was murdered by RSS workers.
The back-to-back killings involving BJP-RSS and SDPI-PFI is the second such incident in the past few months in Kerala.
In December last year in Alappuzha, a leader of SDPI and a leader of BJP were murdered within 24 hours.
With PTI inputs
