Overview
- The sessions court revoked bail and remanded the 17 accused after a hearing that ended with the defence refusing to cross‑examine eyewitnesses, a move the prosecution called a deliberate delay of the trial.
- The trial, which began on May 18, 2026, resumed with injured eyewitnesses Riyas and Noushad identifying five men as the principal attackers and describing their clothes and weapons.
- Prosecutors say Shuhaib was attacked on February 12, 2018, as he left a roadside eatery in Edayannur; the complaint describes attackers arriving in a WagonR, using 'country bombs' to create panic, and fatally hacking him.
- All 17 accused are reported to be CPM workers or affiliates, including M V Akash (Akash Thillankeri), and they have moved the Kerala High Court seeking immediate bail after the sessions court’s order.
- The case has long been contested over investigation control after a single‑judge High Court once ordered a CBI probe that was later stayed by a division bench and left with Kerala Police following the Supreme Court's 2024 refusal to intervene.