A court in Ernakulam, Kerala, here has found 13 persons guilty in the palm chopping case of a professor, while acquitting 18 others.

The court upheld the decision to slap Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) on 10 of the accused. The NIA had submitted a charge-sheet against 31 accused in the case including charges of murder. Five of the accused are still absconding.

Thodupuzha New Man's college teacher TJ Joseph's palm was chopped off on July 4, 2010, for purportedly hurting religious sentiments in a question paper.

A former lecturer of Malayalam literature of Newman College at Thodupuzha, Joseph was attacked and his right hand chopped off allegedly by activists of a fundamentalist outfit on July 5, 2010, while he was going to church with his family.

The attackers told him that he was being punished for sacrilegious undertones of one of the questions he set for the second year graduate students.

Despite widespread condemnation the incident evoked, the college management dismissed Joseph from the job. His plea challenging the decision is pending before the University Apallete Tribubanal.