KANNUR: The killings fields of Kannur are once again painted blood red. Considered to be the hotbed of political violence, fear and shock have gripped the district following the attacks that the political parties have unleashed after the LDF came to power in May 2016.
At a time when the residents were expecting the most from the police department to maintain a law and order situation, Inspector General of Police Dinenandar Kashyap’s statement that they were feeling helpless after the murders of CPI(M) leader K Mohanan and BJP worker Ramith has put the residents in a dock.
After 2008, there were no such political clashes in the district except a few crimes. However, the murders of CPI(M) rebel leader T P Chandrashekaran in 2012 and RSS leader E Manoj in 2014 have once again changed the picture in the district causing huge public outrage. The return of the LDF in the state and the BJP at the Centre thus again shifted the equation.
This year’s wave of gory politics began on May 19, with the murder of Cherikandath Raveendran (55), a CPI(M) worker and native of Pinarayi Puthankandam, during a victory procession after the LDF wrested the seat.
Though the CPI(M) said he was killed by the BJP workers, who first hurled bombs at the procession and then ran a vehicle over him, the latter refuted the allegations.
BJP maintained that he was killed after suffering a fall from the vehicle, which then accidentally ran over him. However, as per police records it was a murder case.Soon after that, around 80 incidents of political clashes were reported in which several workers of both the parties were hospitalised with grievous injuries. In July, political rivalry led to the murder of CPI(M) worker CV Danarajan. BJP leader CK Ramachandran was killed in retaliation.
In the following months,RSS worker M Vineesh, CPI(M) leader K Mohanan and BJP worker Ramith were killed in Kannur.Places like Pathiriyrad, Paduvalyi and Shankaranallur witnessed violence after the murder of Mohanan and his houses and property were damaged. Valuables were also stolen from the houses here.
Senior journalist and political analyst Mohanan said there was a massive change in the violence itself. In the past, political murders took place in the day light but the houses were never attacked. Such trend, however, seems to have changed. Political murders and attacks on houses are taking place in the midnight.
Origin of Strife
It all started with the RSS gaining foothold in the district from 1950s which has been traditionally a Communist bastion. The RSS started rehabilitating local Communist people when a bidi factory moved to Karnataka due to labour trouble. This annoyed the Communist leadership and gradually both the RSS and the Communists engaged in clash resulting in the murders of political leaders.
Prominent Murders
● Mukhya Shikshak of RSS Sakha Vadikkal Ramakrishnan was killed on April 28, 1969
● RSS worker Panunda Chandran was killed on September 2, 1978
● CPI(M) leader P Kunhikannan was killed on October 21, 1981
● SFI state join secretary
K V Sudheesh was killed on
Jan 26, 1994
● CPI(M) local leader Madathil Surendran was killed in Oct 1997
● BJYM Vice-President
K T Jayakrishnan Master was
killed on December 1, 1999
● RSS karyakarta Sujith was killed on Feb 16, 2016
Vijayan backing CPI(M) violence, alleges BJP
Kannur: The violence unleashed against the BJP activists in Kannur is with the consent of CM Pinarayi Vijayan and all support is being given by the home department, alleged PK Krishna Das, BJP’s national executive member. He said CPI(M) goons have unleashed violence and targeted 16 houses of Sangh Parivar sympathisers.
CPI(M): functioning of RSS behind all problems
Kannur: CPI(M) district secretary P Jayarajan said the functioning of RSS, which is completely against the democratic set up, is the reason behind all the problem and there can be peace only if RSS agrees to put down the weapons. He said that the CPM activist Ravindran was killed by the RSS without any provocation in Pinarayi.