Tension has escalated in Edavanna, Malappuram, Kerala, as a conflict over moral policing has sparked a war of flex boards between local residents and college students. The issue began on July 13 when a man recorded a video of a group of students at a bus stop in Edavanna. As the students confronted him, the man allegedly assaulted them and used abusive language. A woman who was part of the group shared the video on social media, explaining that she was accompanied by her younger brother during the incident.
In her post, she described how the man, identified as Kareem, took photos and videos of them without consent and portrayed her and her brother in a negative light. When she requested the man to delete the content, he became violent and verbally abusive. He proceeded to physically assault her brother and their friends. Despite filing a complaint with the police, no action was taken, she claimed. Expressing her frustration, she questioned the societal attitudes that perceived waiting for a bus with her own brother as something immoral.
“He portrayed me and my brother in a moral light. When I asked him to delete the photo, he tried to beat me by using abusive words. He beat up my brother and friends. Remember that this is happening inside a bus stand. No one came to support us. Despite filing a complaint with the police, no action was taken. Has this society become so degenerate that if you wait for a bus with your own brother, you see it differently?,” she posted along with the video.
In response, a flex board was erected at the bus stop with the heading "A warning to the students." The board, attributed to Edavanna Janakeeya Koottayma, (Edavanna People’s Committee) cautioned students against engaging in public displays of affection and suggested that they should instead get married and engage in such activities within their homes. The flex board also threatened consequences for those who disregarded the warning, stating that local residents would handle them and inform their guardians if they were seen in the vicinity after 5 PM.
The flex board attributed to Edavanna Janakeeya Koottayma (Source: Facebook/Muralee Thummarukudy)
In retaliation, another flex board was erected on behalf of the students, criticising the moral policing committee for their unwarranted actions. The board highlighted that no individual or society has the right to proclaim or display flex boards threatening students who are allowed to be in public until 7 PM. It emphasised that the concession time for students extends between 7 AM and 7 PM.
The flex board attributed to the students (Source: Facebook/Aneesh Kumar Vadakkini Purayil)
Edavanna police, based on a complaint filed by the woman, arrested five persons - Abdul kareem, Jaffar, Mohammed Ali, Abdul Gafoor, and Jaseel. They have been booked under sections 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt), 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman), and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Jaffar is a local CPI(M) leader.