THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A day after the police used force to disperse Congress leaders who took out a protest march to the DGP office in Thiruvananthapuram, and slapped cases against them, party state president K Sudhakaran lashed out at Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, terming him a “psychopath”. Calling Pinarayi the epitome of brutality, Sudhakaran warned that the CM will have sleepless nights in 2024.
“There is none to control Pinarayi in CPM. He has turned into a psychopath. The situation is such that the Opposition can’t even hold a black flag protest. We demand a judicial probe by a sitting judge into the police atrocities against Congress leaders and workers,” Sudhakaran told reporters at Indira Bhavan. He also said the CM was forced to embark on the Nava Kerala Sadas after CPM party secretary M V Govindan’s yatra turned out to be a damp squib.
The Congress march to the DGP office on Saturday had turned violent with the police using water cannons and firing tear-gas shells to disperse the protesters. Senior Congress leaders, including Sudhakaran, Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan, Ramesh Chennithala, Kodikunnil Suresh and Shashi Tharoor, were booked in connection with the violence.
Kerala under ‘police goonda raj’: Venugopal
Senior Congress leaders, including Sudhakaran, Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan, Ramesh Chennithala, Kodikunnil Suresh and Shashi Tharoor, were booked in connection with the violence. Meanwhile, Sudhakaran accused the CM of ensuring police high-handedness against him and other Congress leaders despite being fully aware of his health issues.
He also expressed horror over what would have happened had one of the eight tear gas shells fired by the police burst under the mini van on which the party leaders were addressing protesters. “All senior Congress leaders would have perished in the police atrocity on Saturday,” Sudhakaran said. Meanwhile, AICC general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal termed Pinarayi a “sadist” and alleged Kerala had come under ‘police goonda raj.”
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi slapped cases against journalists who covered the protests against him. The situation is same in Kerala as well. It’s surprising that the CM’s gunman Anil Kumar, who was booked in a case following the court’s intervention, continues to discharge his duties,” Venugopal told reporters after visiting KSU activists at the private hospital where they were admitted after getting injured in the police action during a protest march.
Chennithala expressed confidence that the morale of Congress leaders and activists will not take a hit even as the LDF government is on a spree to slap cases on them. He said the terror being unleashed by the government will not be enough to suppress the Opposition’s fight in favour of the people.