Who is Sukumara Kurup? Here is why Keralam’s most infamous fugitive is back in the news after four decades

HOME Minister Ramesh Chennithala on Friday said that he has instructed the state Crime Branch to verify media reports that wanted fugitive Sukumara Kurup is still alive.

"I have instructed ADGP Crime Branch Venkatesh to investigate. The Kerala Police needs to contact Interpol and find out the actual truth of the matter. Right now, what we have are just rumours. These are not verified facts," Chennithala said, a day after a section of Malayalam media, citing alleged eyewitnesses and former investigating officers, reported that Kurup, whose whereabouts since 1984 are unknown, is living in a foreign country under a false identity.

Who is Sukumara Kurup?

Kurup, whose real name is Gopalakrishna Kurup, a former Indian Air Force airman from Alappuzha, became Keralam’s most wanted fugitive after he, along with his accomplices, murdered a stranger and burned his body inside his car to stage his accident death to claim a hefty insurance amount.

Kurup, who moved to the Middle East after his IAF days and worked as an executive with a marine petroleum company in Abu Dhabi, had a life insurance policy of ₹800,000.

In January 1984, while visiting Keralam, Kurup planned to fake his own death to claim the insurance payout. On 21 January 1984, Kurup and his accomplices, which included his brother-in-law and driver, spotted their victim, Chacko, a film representative, who had a similar physical appearance.

They offered Chacko a lift, and once inside the car, they forcefully intoxicated, poisoned, and strangled him to death before setting the body on fire along with the vehicle to make it look like an accident.

While it was initially ruled as an accident, subsequent investigations unravelled the truth about the chilling murder. All the other accused were arrested and sentenced, but Kurup has not been seen since his disappearance in 1984.

A crime never forgotten

However, his name refused to be erased from Keralam’s collective memory, and every so often people came forward claiming that they had seen someone resembling Kurup.

In 2021, the real-life crime story was recreated on the silver screen in the Malayalam film Kurup, in which Dulquer Salmaan played the lead role.

Is Kurup still alive?

The fugitive was thrust back into the spotlight after Ali Akbar, a former Crime Branch official who investigated the case in 2017, told local media earlier this week that Kurup was living in Brunei under the false identity of John Menon, who claims to be a Malaysian citizen of Indian origin.

Subsequently, a Malayalam news channel also published what it claims to be the latest photo of Kurup and his alleged hideout in Brunei.

Responding to the developments, Chennithala said the case is currently being investigated by the Crime Branch and has been classified as a Long Pending (LP) case.

He said all efforts would be made to ascertain the facts.

"The Crime Branch will gather the details and inform as soon as they are received," he said.