PALAKKAD: The district committee offices of the CPM and the BJP in the city were attacked by anti-social elements in the wee hours of Friday. However, there were no damages to the offices and no one was hurt in the incident.
The first attack was on the CPM district committee office as two motorcycle-borne persons threw a bottle of kerosene with a burning wick into the building at around midnight. The kerosene was filled in a used beer bottle and a wick was attached to it. The wick was lighted and the bottle was thrown into the office premises by the pillion rider.
Subsequently, at around 2 PM. two persons in a motorbike threw a similar bottle filled with kerosene with a wick lighted into the district committee office of BJP.
The police visited the offices and evaluated the developments. The chairman of the administrative reforms commission VS Achuthanandan, an MLA from the district, visited the CPM district committee office in the afternoon. The CPM has planned a procession in the town in the evening to protest against the attack.
Palakkad, traditionally a stronghold of CPM, is witnessing a surge of BJP in recent times. Palakkad is the only municipality in the State ruled by BJP and it had made a good show in the district in the last Assembly elections with good performance in Palakkad and Malampuzha. If it had pushed CPM to the third position in Palakkad, it was the turn of Congress in Malampuzha.
CPM-BJP battle continues
The attack on the party offices of the CPM and the BJP on Thursday night is attributed to the simmering tensions and violence between the two parties in the Kanjikode and Pudussery areas for the past one month.
Though the District Collector had called a conciliation meeting and the BJP, RSS, and the CPM leaders attended it, violence continued unabated. BJP district president Krishnadas said the Walayar Circle Inspector was responsible for the escalation of violence as he failed to arrest even one CPM worker.