A protest march organised by the Youth Congress to the Kerala Secretariat in Thiruvananthapuram turned violent on Wednesday, December 20, after the police used force and water cannons to disperse the protesters. The activists were protesting the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) government’s alleged attempts to stifle dissent by attacking workers of the Youth Congress and the Kerala Students Union (KSU), the student wing of the Indian National Congress, who had staged protests at various venues of the Nava Kerala Sadas programme. One of the banners carried during the march read, “Chief minister or Chief gangster?” (‘Mukhyan mukhya gundayo mukhya manthriyo?’)
The Youth Congress protesters also alleged that the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) and the Students' Federation of India (SFI) — associated with the ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist) — were taking law into their own hands and going scot-free by joining the police in attacking Congress protesters. Such attacks had happened in several Nava Kerala Sadas venues from Kasaragod to Kollam.
As Youth Congress workers including women tried to force their way into the Secretariat, the police launched a lathi charge against them, injuring several party leaders including YC state president Rahul Mamkoottathil. “Would the police’s approach be the same when the SFI is protesting?” Rahul asked, alleging that when they asked the police to take the injured workers to the hospital, the police shifted them to the jeep and beat them up further.
After the protest escalated into a street combat between the Youth Congress workers and the police, Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan told the media that male police officials tore the clothes of the female Youth Congress workers during the protest. “Such a huge conflict happened because of the police’s unnecessary violence towards the girls,” he alleged.
A number of police officials were also injured in the conflict, as Youth Congress workers retaliated to the lathi charge with sticks and stone pelting. Protesters also broke the window panes of a police vehicle. Some media persons were also injured while covering the protest.
The march started from the Thiruvananthapuram Press Club after being flagged off by Satheesan. Shafi Parambil MLA and Rahul Mamkootathil were present at the front line of the march. During the march from the Press Club to the Secretariat, the protesters also tore up posters of the Nava Kerala Sadas.
As per reports, some Youth Congress workers who were arrested by the police were forcibly released by other protesters from the police vehicles. Subsequently, the police allegedly even followed Satheesan and other Youth Congress leaders to the District Congress Committee (DCC) office, demanding to get the arrested protesters back. Here too, some of the workers pelted stones at the police. After an escalated discussion between the leaders and police, Congress agreed to hand over two activists to police custody.