THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Congress in the state on Tuesday came out against the CPM and the government for the murder of a Youth Congress activist in Kannur, alleging that the district was witnessing a ‘red terror’ and the CPM was trying to instigate violence. Condemning the killing of Youth Congress Mattanur block secretary M Shuhaib, CWC member A K Antony said the murder of the activist was the latest example of CPM terror. “The police have become ineffective in front of CPM terror. The CPM believes that they can do whatever they want under the protection of power,’’ he said in a statement.
The CPM has once again proved that it is not ready to forgo the murderous politics that they are following, he said and added that those who are leading the government are themselves encouraging violence. Antony alleged Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who is unable to ensure law and order in his own district, has proved to be a failure. He also expressed doubts if the investigation into the murder of Shuhaib will go in the right direction and the culprits brought before the law. ‘’If a proper investigation is not carried out, then other means of investigation have to be sought,’’ he said. Peaceful life has now become impossible in the state with the CPM and the BJP unleashing violence and murder, he alleged.
Meanwhile, KPCC president M M Hassan alleged the CPM has turned the state into a war zone. Alleging that the CPM was behind the murder of the Youth Congress activist, he said the CPM district secretary’s statement that the party had no role in the murder was not true. Hassan alleged the murder happened with the complete knowledge of the CPM district leadership. ‘’A video showing some CPM members threatening Shuhaib during their rally in Edayannur two weeks ago has now come out. This itself is proof enough to show that the CPM is behind the murder,” Hassan said.
The KPCC chief alleged that the CPM had the backing of the police in unleashing such violence.
Stating that Kannur was now witnessing ‘ red terror’, Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala alleged that the CPM in power was engaged in violence and murder. The police have become ineffective under the Left rule, he alleged. Noting that 22 political murders have taken place after the Left came to power, he alleged the CPM was not allowing other political parties to function in the district.
Former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy also came out against the attack on the Youth Congress activist, alleging all this could not have happened without the knowledge of the government. The CPM is only trying to spread violence in the district, he said. The police have not taken any action despite the state witnessing 22 political murders, he said.
Thousands pay last respects to Shuhaib
Kannur: Thousands of Congress workers thronged the Edayannur Juma Masjid to pay last respects to the slain Youth Congress worker Shuhaib when the body was brought for burial after postmortem examination at the Kozhikode Medical College Hospital. Congress leaders, including KPCC president M M Hassan, V M Sudheeran, K Sudhakaran and Satheeshan Pacheni, attended the funeral that took place around 11 pm on Tuesday. Earlier, the Congress leadership had alleged the CPM workers were behind the murder of Youth Congress Mattannur block secretary Shuhaib. They said the CPM activists did the heinous crime without any provocation. In a late night act of terror, Shuhaib was killed by unidentified attackers at Edayannur Therur near Mattannur on Monday.
Video leaves CPM red faced
Kannur : A video of CPM workers issuing death threats to slain Youth Congress leader Shuhaib during a CPM protest march at Edayannur two weeks ago has put the CPM on the defensive. In the video that went viral, CPM workers are seen shouting death threats against Shuhaib by saying ‘your days are numbered’. The march was organised in connection with a clash between the activists of the KSU, Youth Congress and CITU at Edayannur. The minor scuffle at the Edayannur Higher Secondary School between SFI and KSU workers had snowballed into an issue outside the school compound. Shuhaib was remanded for his involvement in the case. As the news of the death of Shuhaib came on Tuesday morning, the video was posted on WhatsApp. And soon, television channels started showing the visuals leaving the CPM red faced. The video went viral on Facebook also. “Whether there is any connection between the murder and the death threats need to be investigated by the police’, said CPM district secretary P Jayarajan.
Hartal peaceful in district
Kannur : The dawn-to-dusk hartal called by the District Congress Committee to protest against the murder of Youth Congress leader Shuhaib was peaceful in the district. The DCC had excluded vehicles from the hartal in view of the Mahasivarathri which is being celebrated on Tuesday at many temples in the district. Shops and offices remained closed but private vehicles plied as usual. Though buses and autorickshaws conducted service, shops remained shut. Some incidents of minor scuffles were reported at some places where pro-hartal activists tried to forcefully shut shops. In protest against the murder, the DCC took out a march in the town.
Hunger strike: To protest against the heinous murder of Shuhaib, DCC president Satheeshan Pacheni will conduct a 24-hour hunger strike in front of the Collectorate on Wednesday. Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala will inaugurate the strike at 10 am. It will end at 10 am on Thursday.