A leader of the Kerala Students Union (KSU) has raised a complaint against the state police for allegedly manhandling her during a protest. Members of KSU, affiliated to the Congress party, were participating in a protest against Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in Kochi’s Kalamassery on Saturday, February 11, when the incident took place. While the police were detaining the protestors, Miva Jolly alleged that the Kalamassery Circle Inspector physically assaulted her by pushing her head forcefully and verbally abused her.
Visuals of the protest have surfaced online, which show Miva and other protestors being dragged away and forcefully pushed into a vehicle. After the complaint was raised, the Congress staged a black flag protest in several places on Sunday, February 13. Miva is the general secretary of KSU.
Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan condemned the incident and called it a “barbaric act”. He also demanded action to be taken against the police. Based on a complaint filed by KSU members, Kochi Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) directed the Thrikkakara assistant commissioner to probe the incident and submit a report in the regard.