A Kerala Youth Congress worker was arrested by the Thiruvananthapuram cyber crime police for allegedly putting up a Facebook post ‘defaming’ Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. Sebin Johnson (35), a native of Aranmula in the Pathanamthitta district, was taken into custody on the evening of Friday, February 24, with the help of Aranmula police. The contentious Facebook post had a 51-second video that was reportedly edited with the watermark of a TV channel. The accused had allegedly edited some portions of CM Pinarayi’s press meet, and posted the video on Facebook seeking donations. The exact contents of the video clip remain unclear.
On February 19, the Kozhikode Government Arts and Science College directed the participants of a public programme, in which Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan was the chief guest, to refrain from wearing black clothes and black masks. Since the state Budget for 2023-24 was presented on February 3, Kerala has witnessed widespread protests by the opposition Congress over the rise in fuel cess by Rs 2 per litre. Earlier in February, Youth Congress workers had waved black flags at CM Pinarayi Vijayan at multiple locations in Ernakulam district as part of their protest.
With agency inputs
