The Hindu : DCC chief blames Home Department for Marad violence

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jan 15, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

DCC chief blames Home Department for Marad violence

By Our Special Correspondent

KOZHIKODE, JAN. 14 . The DCC president, M. Veerankutty, in his submission before the Marad Judicial Inquiry Commission, has blamed the Home Department for the Marad massacre.

In his submission, the DCC chief said the Home Department's inertia and policy of communal appeasement had created the right conditions for criminals and religious fanatics to have a free run in the communally sensitive village. It also enabled extremists in both the groups to whip up communal hatred.

He said the Marad massacre was not a spontaneous outbreak of violence but a well planned and executed killing to avenge the death of Aboobacker, who was killed in the riot the previous year.

Certain religious militants also added a new dimension to the massacre, the DCC president said.

A main cause of the May 2 massacre, according to Mr Veerankuty's statement, was the determination of Aboobacaker's relatives to take revenge.

The DCC president also stated that the Government had failed to bring to book those responsible for the 2002 riots and that it had to be seen as criminal negligence.

He claimed that the Congress alone campaigned against communal forces in the violence-ravaged Marad while the Indian Union Muslim League and the CPI(M) had exploited the situation to lure people to their respective camps.

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