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Police Atrocity Towards Agitators who Opposed Land Survey
A proposed move by the Kerala govrenment to construct a four-lane road for an upcoming industrial project at Kinaloor in Kozhikode met with violent opposition from local people.
The incident happened on Thursday morning, when the people blocked a team of government officials arrived at Kinaloor to undertake a survey for the proposed road. About 100 people, including women and old, were injured in a pitched battle followed.
The protestors had blocked the road leading to the estate with large boulders and timber logs in the morning when the officials, led by Revenue Divisional Officer K.P. Remadevi, arrived for the survey. Soon a pitched battle broke out between the protestors and the police and women constables were seen, beating, dragging women and children from the frontline of the blockade.
Soon after Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan who is away in Delhi saw the images of the clashes that were aired by local television channels, he asked the district officials to stop the survey and to police to withdraw from the scene.
Following the chief minister's directives to the director-general of police to withdraw the police force from the area and to the collector to submit a report on the incidents, there was some easing of tension in the area. However, opposition to the road project is unlikely to ebb.
Many villagers who were hurt in the clashes have vowed they will fight to the end to stop the move to construct the road through their village.
The police resorted to a lathicharge to cow down the protestors and they responded by hurling stones. Several protestors, including women and children, were injured in the lathicharge. Some policemen also sustained injuries in stone-throwing. The police used a grenade and teargas to disperse the crowd. They chased the protestors into nearby houses and damaged vehicles parked outside.
All the political organizations barring left front protested against the police brutality towards agitating people.
A hartal was observed today in the Balussery and the Elathur Assembly constituencies in protest against police violence. The hartal, which was backed by UDF constituents, Social Democratic Party of India and BJP, was total in the whole area.
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