BJP state chief Surendran discharged by Kerala court from poll bribery case

A Kerala court on Saturday discharged BJP state president K Surendran and five others from the Manjeshwaram election bribery case. Surendran and the others were discharged by Kasaragod Sessions Judge Sanu S Panicker. The BJP state chief's lawyer told reporters that the court said that prima facie the case would not stand. The lawyer also said that the court accepted the defense argument that there was no need to go for trial in the case. He further said that the defense was able to prove that the case was a fabricated one and that there was a political conspiracy behind it. The detailed order is not yet available. Surendran, while talking to media outside the court after the verdict, recalled that he was saying right from the beginning: "truth will prevail". He added that it was a "well planned conspiracy to implicate him in the false case to destroy his political prospects". "Leaders of the CPI(M), Congress and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) were behind the conspiracy,"