ALAPPUZHA: Alappuzha had witnessed many political uprisings and clashes between Communist and Congress activists till many years ago. However, killings by political and communal organisations have been rare of late, which is why people are shocked at the two murders in a span of 12 hours.
Muslim outfits like SDPI and Hindu organisations like BJP-Sangh Parivar are active in a few pockets of the district. Vayalar in Cherthala taluk is one of the strongholds of both groups. The killing of an RSS worker in the area in February this year is said to be the reason for the attack on SDPI state secretary KS Shan at Mannanchery on Saturday night.
The protest rallies organised by both SDPI and RSS during the assembly election campaign ended in a clash. Following this, Nandu Krishnan, an activist of RSS, was hacked to death at Vayalar on February 24. Another activist suffered serious injuries in the attack.
The clash took place in connection with the Vijay Yatra led by BJP state president K Surendran from Kasaragod. The SDPI workers of Vayalar held a protest meeting against Yogi’s arrival in the state. To their register protest against SDPI workers, RSS men also took out a protest march, shouting slogans against the outfit. This provoked SDPI workers who took out another protest march.
Workers of both organisations threw stones at the houses of rivals over several days, leading to Nandu's murder. The police arrested eight SDPI activists in connection with the case. Since then, both organisations had been lying low in the taluk.
The police suspect that the RSS plotted Shan's murder in retaliation to Nandu's killing. A meeting of some Hindu organisations was held in Alappuzha on Saturday. The presence of some RSS state leaders at the meeting has created suspicion that they might have had a role in the murder.
The police said Shan's murder was planned. "The assailants rented a car to execute the murder. They knocked down Shan who was returning home on a two-wheeler after closing his shop at Mannanchery, and then hacked him. The assailants knew of his daily route and attacked him on an empty road," said an officer.
The CCTV footage from a nearby building has helped the police get a lead in the case. "In the footage, Shan’s scooter was seen being hit by the car. The occupants came out and unleashed a brutal attack. The police found out that the car's registration number was fake and took the person who helped the gang rent the vehicle into custody," said an officer.
There have been clashes between SDPI and RSS activists in some areas in the district like Vayalar, Mannanchery, Kayamkulam and Charummood for some time. However, one of the major attacks was at Vayalar in February and the twin murders were a continuation of that.
Shan's murder was planned, say police
According to the police, SDPI leader Shan's murder was planned. "The assailants rented a car to execute the murder. They knocked down Shan who was returning home on a two-wheeler after closing his shop at Mannanchery, and then hacked him. The assailants knew his route and attacked him on an empty road," said an officer.