Swami Laxmanananda murder accused are innocent: Author

Thrissur: The author of the book ‘Who killed Swami Laxmanananda?’ Anto Akkara said on Monday that the seven persons convicted in the murder of the swami were not the real culprits. Announcing the release of the book here on Monday said,  claimed he had several exclusive presentations for the public and readers about how seven Christians who lived in a remote place in Kandhamal district in Odisha were dragged into the case and got convicted. The book will be released at Sahithya Akademi Hall in Thrissur on Tuesday.

The book was released in Delhi by Kuldip Nayar and its Malayalam translation was released by poet K. Sachidanandan in Thiruvananthapuram last week. “The crime branch of Odisha police cooked up a story,” he said.  “The police arrested seven persons after the murder of the Swami on August 23, 2008, and kept them in custody for nearly a month. As there was no evidence against them, another batch of seven innocent persons was charged with the crime.”

Mr Akkara, a human rights activist, said the swami was murdered by goons and his presentation on Tuesday at the book release function would explain how the CB charged innocent men in the murder case and let off the real murderers. The fast track court at Phulbani, the district head quarters of Kandhamal district, was shut down as the judges refused to punish innocent men framed by the police, he said.