People's Democracy

KERALA NEWSLETTER

Sequel to Witch-Hunt: Krishnapillai Memorial Attacked

N S Sajith

IN the backdrop of the statewide attacks unleashed by Congress miscreants on CPI(M) offices in the name of an incident of stone pelting on the chief minister, Oommen Chandy, some antisocial elements tried to burn the memorial of Comrade P Krishnapillai, founder of the communist movement in Kerala, on October 31, 2013. 

One may note that the CPI(M) had carefully and assiduously preserved a thatched old house at Kannarkad in Alappuzha where Comrade P Krishnapillai died on August 19, 1948 due to snakebite while he was living underground. The house which Krishnapillai used as a shelter belonged to an agricultural worker. It has now completely gutted down while the statue erected in front of it was also damaged.

The persons who damaged the Comrade Krishanpillai memorial clearly lacked knowledge of the high stature of the leader who was popularly known as ‘Sakhav’ which means comrade, CPI(M) state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan said. People know about those who have who done it. The hasty denial that came from the Congress leadership shows who the culprits are. This attack too was a part of the statewide attacks set in motion by the Congress. In Alappuzha, many offices of the CPI(M) were attacked, Pinarayi said. He also asked the CPI(M) workers to maintain calm and restraint.

CHANDY ‘INJURED’ IN

A DUBIOUS ‘ATTACK’            

In a dubious attempt to distract the people’s wrath against the chief minister and the UDF government, Oommen Chandy appeared at a public programme in Kannur on October 27, 2013, with two minor scars on his forehead. The chief minister’s lieutenant and culture minister K C Joseph, who travelled along with him, claimed that the chief minister was attacked by LDF workers who had staged a protest in Kannur.              

CPI(M) state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan rejected the allegation, saying that to attack anyone physically is never the method of the LDF and demanding that the incident must be investigated thoroughly. However, in the name of a protest against the alleged attack, UDF workers unleashed atrocities against CPI(M) cadres all over the state.             

One notes that LDF workers have been protesting and staging black flag demonstrations at every programme the chief minister attends. The LDF has been demanding the resignation of Oommen Chandy for his role in the multi-crore solar panel scam.     

After the said attack occurred at 5.40 p m, Chandy attended two more functions including the concluding session of police athletic meet in Kannur. It was only after hours of the claimed attack that he underwent a medical examination and scanning in a private hospital. When the news channels telecast the attack stories, he was distributing trophies to the winners of the police athletic meet.             

For this function the police had re-routed the chief minister’s way to the venue, as LDF workers had gheraoed the main entrance to the police parade ground where the state police athletic meet was to take place. There was thus no protesting LDF worker on this alternate route of the chief minister. Moreover, when the right wind-glass of the CM’s official car was shattered, those sitting on the other side, including K C Joseph were not injured. This too created doubts on the UDF’s claim of an attack.

Opposition leader V S Achuthanandan has demanded a thorough inquiry into the incident, saying now it was evident that the Congressmen had themselves pelted stone on the chief minister.

TV FOOTAGE EXPLODES

THE CLAIM OF ATTACK

Very soon, on October 30, 2013, in a curious turn of events, the stone pelting incident boomeranged upon the Congress and pro-Congress media as another section of media telecast the footage of a Congressman pelting stones on the chief minister. This footage exploded the three days long vicious campaign against the CPI(M) and Left Democratic Front by the ruling UDF. For the preceding three days the police has been witch-hunting the innocent CPI(M) workers and cases were registered against many including two legislators, K K Narayanan and C Krishnan, under section of 307 IPC etc. This was despite the fact that in August itself, the state intelligence had informed the home department about the possibility that certain antisocial elements may intrude into the ranks of LDF workers who have been staging a protest against the chief minister all over the state.

These latest visuals vividly show the face of Palliparambil Kunjimuhammed from Kolecheri in Kannur district. He, an active Congress worker, is involved in various criminal activities including a case related to the Muslim League office being set ablaze in Kolecheri. People from Kolecheri too identified Kunjimuhammed from the visuals which were circulated on You Tube and Facebook with the caption “DYFI Worker Pelting Stone on Chief Minister Oommen Chandy.” Pro-UDF newspapers like Malayala Manorama too published his photo with the same caption. District Congress Committee member Baby Odampally was also seen in these visuals.

Soon after these visuals were telecast, Kunjimuhammed presented himself before the media along with Congress leaders in Kannur. He admitted that he had pelted stones. He and DCC president Surendran claimed that stones were pelted on LDF workers and not on the chief minister. But they were not able to answer the query as to why Kunjimuhammed intruded into a group of LDF workers.

CPI(M) state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan reacted by saying that these visuals had exploded one more fake story. He said the stone pelting was the product of a high level conspiracy hatched by the Congress leadership, and that the chief minister must stop the drama of being hurt.

CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Kodiyeri Balakrishnan demanded immediate arrest of Kunjimuhammed.