THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The district administration on Thursday clamped prohibitory orders under Section 81 of the Police Act on Neyyattinkara and nearby regions for five days following Wednesday’s CPM-Congress clash after Kovalam MLA M Vincent’s arrest.
The prohibitory orders will be in places falling under Neyyattinkara, Balaramapuram, Naruvamoodu, Marayamuttom, Kattakkada and Maranalloor police stations, District Collector S Venkatesapathy said.
Marches, public meetings and sloganeering are banned during the ban. The Collector requested the public to desist from such activities until the ban is lifted.
Clashes had broken out in Balaramapuram between the activists of CPM and Congress on Wednesday leaving many people injured.The CPM has been demanding the resignation of Vincent, who is in custody over the alleged molestation of a woman, while Congress workers were demanding his immediate release. The prohibitory orders were issued after the CPM threatened to take out a protest march to Vincent’s home and Congress workers readying to stop it.
Neyyattinkara MLA K Ansalan has urged the Congress to end its propaganda he had been involved in a conspiracy to trap the MLA in the sexual abuse case. Responding to the allegations that he and CPM district secretary Anavoor Nagappan had conspired to trap Vincent in the case, he said he had gone to the hospital where the victim was being treated. “I was there at the hospital to visit another patient from his constituency,” he said. He had met mediapersons there and only then he had come to know about the incident. “I had neither met the victim nor her relatives,” he said..
BJP-CPM flare-up sparks tension
T’Puram: Tension prevailed at Attukal and Manacaud near East Fort here on Thursday following clashes involving CPM and BJP workers. The flare-up was the fallout of the dispute over the student union elections at a private college at Attukal. Ten houses, indluding those of ward councillors belonging to both parties, were damaged in the violence. The cars and scooters parked in front of the houses too were targeted by the attackers. CITU Manacaud area secretary Shyam who was hacked has been admitted to a private hospital . DYFI Chalai area secretary Unni was manhandled and his house was attacked. The window panes of the house of CPM area secretary S A Sunder’s house were damaged in stone throwing. Across the political spectrum, houses of BJP’s corporation councillor S K P Ramesh and Attukal councillor and BJP district secretary Beena were also attacked.