Kerala capital turns into battlefield as Youth Congress cadres clash with cops

Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 20 (PTI) As the Nava Kerala Sadas of the Left government entered the southernmost district of Kerala, the heart of its capital turned into a battlefield between the police and activists of the Youth Congress (YC) on Wednesday.

The YC, led by its state president Rahul Mamkoottathil, marched to the state Secretariat in protest against the attacks on its and KSU activists for showing black flags to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

Outside the secretariat, Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Assembly V D Satheesan threatened that its Youth Congress (YC) and Kerala Student Union (KSU) workers will now hit back, if police action was not taken against those who attacked its people from Kalliasseri in Kannur district to Kollam during the Nava Kerala Sadas programme.

Satheesan's remarks received severe criticism from the Left front which alleged that he was "encouraging violence and goondaism".

It also warned of strict action if violence was unleased by the Congress in the state.

Satheesan, in his speech outside the Secretariat, also demanded removal of the CM's "criminal" gunman and personal security officers who allegedly beat up YC-KSU activists for showing black flags to Vijayan.

"There is a limit to everything. Till now we have been telling them (YC-KSU activists) to exercise restraint. I am here to change that stance.

"If these two things are not done, hit back. We will hit back. Let there be no doubt about that. We will account for every attack on us from Kalliasseri (in Kannur district) till Kollam. We know who all attacked our people. We will retaliate starting from Kalliasseri," the LoP said.

Shortly after his speech concluded, things turned violent outside the secretariat with the YC activists trying to climb over the barricades into the Secretariat and also threw sticks and stones against the police and its water cannon vehicle.

In response, the police used the water cannon several times to disperse the protestors, but the YC workers were not dissuaded and they kept throwing stones and sticks at the police and its water cannon vehicle.

The YC activists also snatched away and smashed the shields of the police personnel who stopped them from entering the secretariat and even smashed the window of a police bus.

As the YC activists became violent, the police finally resorted to a lathicharge to disperse the protestors and also took several of them into custody.

Even Mamkoottathil was allegedly injured in the lathicharge.

He told reporters that this kind of police action was not seen against the Students' Federation of India (SFI) activists when they protested against the Governor and demanded that his injured YC colleagues be hospitalised.

Things did not end there as YC activists alleged that a male police officer tore the dress of a female protestor and that police was denying treatment to their injured colleagues.

Soon, thereafter, Satheesan returned to the spot, sent injured female YC activists in his official vehicle to a hospital and walked with the remaining protestors to the District Congress Committee (DCC) office nearby.

The police followed them there seeking custody of those activists who had allegedly released some of the protestors from their custody.

Satheesan and other Congress leaders at the DCC office refused to allow entry to the police and visuals on TV also showed things being thrown at the officers from inside the gates.

The standoff ended later with the Congress allowing police to take back into custody the persons who were released from the police vehicles.

Earlier, Satheesan said that the protests by the Congress, YC and KSU would continue in the state if their two demands were not met by the government.

He also said that YC workers were cruelly beaten by the police and demanded action against the male policeman who allegedly tore the clothes of a woman activist.

The actions of Satheesan and the YC activists was condemned by the Left front with LDF convener E P Jayarajan claiming that the LoP "was encouraging violence and goondaism." State ministers V Sivankutty and Antony Raju alleged that the Congress was planning to create riots across the state and accused Satheesan of being the mastermind behind it.

They warned of strict action if violence was unleashed in the state.

The Ministers as well as Jayarajan alleged that the Congress as well as Satheesan have lost their mental balance after seeing the public support for the Nava Kerala Sadas.

The Congress, YC and KSU workers also carried out marches to police stations across the state in protest against the alleged attacks on YC-KSU activists over their black flag protests against Vijayan.

The Congress organised protest marches to 564 police stations across the state under the aegis of the party's mandalam committees.

It would also be holding a massive march, led by KPCC chief K Sudhakaran, to the office of the state DGP Sheikh Darvesh Sahib on December 23 as a mark of protest against the alleged attacks on YC-KSU activists over the black flags shown to Vijayan. PTI