THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : The Youth Congress secretariat march in protest against the arrest of its state president Rahul Mamkootathil turned out to be a damp squib. Hardly 250 YC workers attended the march which started from Palayam Martyr’s Square and inaugurated by former YC state president Shafi Parambil, MLA. Several scores of YC workers who owed allegiance to former CM Oommen Chandy in Thiruvananthapuram district have been staying away from day-to-day activities allegedly due to the monopoly shared between V D Satheesan, Shafi and Rahul in Thiruvananthapuram district.
A day after Rahul’s arrest from his home at Adoor by the Cantonment Police, party workers expected the youth movement to show its strength and pose a challenge to the LDF government. But that did not happen with the police resorting to use two rounds of water cannons against the YC activists when they tried to break the barriers. Prior to the protest, Shafi was heard urging a group of youth leaders who were out on bail on Tuesday to stay away from the camera lens of the police videographer and photographer lest it gets cancelled.
A former YC leader told TNIE that the Thiruvananthapuram district committee had been lying low over the past several months.
“The YC Thiruvananthapuram district committee has always been a stronghold of Oommen Chandy camp. But ever since he passed away, the workers have been a discontented lot as the trio comprising Satheesan, Shafi and now Rahul has been taking unilateral decisions,” said a former YC leader.
However, a source close to Satheesan told TNIE that there was no way the YC Secretariat protest march would turn out to be violent. “If the protest had turned violent, it would only affect the bail prospects of Rahul which is being moved before the Sessions Court. The Secretariat march was decided only on Tuesday evening after Rahul was remanded in judicial custody.
There is no question of Satheesan, Shafi and Rahul taking unilateral decisions as these are all baseless allegations being raised by a Congress leader who has been ousted from the party,” said a source close to Satheesan.Youth Congress vice-president Abin Varkey said they have decided to take out protest against across the state.