In a jolt to BJP Kerala president K Surendran, a forensic report on Wednesday confirmed that the voice in the audio clip released by Janadhipathya Rashtriya Party (JRP) leader Praseetha Azhikode, in connection with the Sulthan Bathery election bribery case was that of Surendran. The report containing the findings has been handed over to the Crime Branch wing of the police.
The voice samples of K Surendran, tribal leader C K Janu, main witness Praseetha Azhikode and BJP Wayanad District General Secretary Prashant Malayavayal were collected for the examination. The forensic examination identified the voices of the respective persons.
The authenticity of audio clips is crucial in the progress of the case and the forensic report corroborating the same comes in this context. It is learnt that a charge sheet will soon be filed against Surendran and Janu based on the forensic report. This is the second poll-related bribery case filed against Surendran in the after the 2021 Assembly polls.
The police had registered a case against Surendran for allegedly bribing tribal leader CK Janu to contest from Sultan Bathery Assembly seat in the 2021 election.
Praseetha Azhikode had deposed before the Police that the BJP state chief had given Rs 10 lakh to CK Janu to persuade her return to the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and contest the polls
Praseetha had released a few audio clips which she claimed were records of the conversations she had with Surendran on handing over Rs 10 lakh to Janu. One audio tape has a purported conversation with the BJP leader on an additional transaction of Rs 25 lakh to Janu
Earlier, Sultan Bathery Judicial First Class Court rejected K Surendran’s plea seeking to conduct his voice-matching test at a laboratory under the Central government.