Thiruvananthapuram: The home department has decided to appoint advocate Santhosh as special public prosecutor in the case related to the death of journalist K M Basheer. Basheer’s wife had earlier approached the high court seeking the appointment of a special public prosecutor. The trial in the case is under way before Thiruvananthapuram fourth additional sessions court.Basheer, the then Thiruvananthapuram unit chief of Siraj daily, was killed on Aug 3, 2019, after the bike he was travelling on was knocked down by a car near Museum Junction. The car was allegedly driven by IAS officer Sriram Venkitaraman, who is accused of driving under the influence of alcohol.The car was registered in the name of Vafa Firoz, a Thiruvananthapuram resident. In the aftermath of the accident, allegations emerged that an attempt was made to establish that Vafa was driving the car. The police had initially stated that it was she behind the wheel. However, eyewitness accounts and subsequent intervention by journalists challenged that version.Venkitaraman is the sole accused in the case. He faces charges including culpable homicide not amounting to murder, dangerous and drunk driving and destruction of evidence.Witness identifies Basheer’s motorcycle parts: Meanwhile, a mahazar witness, Sajir, an autorickshaw driver from Vilappilsala, on Tuesday identified the parts of Basheer’s motorcycle and his helmet that were recovered from the accident site.However, Sajir told the court that he could not say with certainty which vehicle the number plate he identified belonged to. He also said that he had reached the accident spot only after the crash and therefore had not seen who was driving the vehicle or how the accident occurred.Sajir also identified seven articles recovered from the car allegedly driven by Venkitaraman. The prosecution produced these as material objects, and the court admitted them into evidence. So far, 12 witnesses have been examined in the case. One witness turned hostile.
