The Hindu : Kerala News : Judicial probe sought into jail clash

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Thursday, Apr 08, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

Judicial probe sought into jail clash

By Our Special Correspondent

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, APRIL 7. The Leader of the Opposition, V.S. Achuthanandan, and the CPI(M) State secretary, Pinarayi Vijayan, have demanded a judicial inquiry into the murder of a CPI(M) inmate of the Kannur Central prison on Tuesday.

In separate statements here today, Mr. Achuthanandan and Mr. Vijayan termed the murder gruesome and said the Government should bear full responsibility for the incident. They alleged that the attack was result of a conspiracy hatched by the RSS workers with the connivance of the prison officials.

Mr. Achuthanandan pointed out that over a dozen RSS workers had covered roughly half-a-kilometre with weapons to attack Ravindran, who was killed, and other CPI(M) inmates and that there was no attempt by the prison officials to intervene despite their being witnesses to the armed attack.

The RSS elements could not have brought weapons into the prison without the knowledge of the jail officials. The Government should order a judicial inquiry and take stern measures to ensure that such attacks did not recur, he said.

Mr. Vijayan said all the evidences pointed to the attack on the CPI(M) activists being well-planned. The RSS workers had not only used their implements, but also weapons brought from outside in the attack. An officer in the jail had warned higher jail authorities about the possibility of an attack at a meeting of officers held to review the situation following the Marad incidents. However, no step was taken to prevent it, he said.

The CPI(M) State secretary said the conspiracy leading to the murder and the Government policies that enabled the RSS cadres to indulge in violence could be brought out only through a judicial probe.

BJP resents transfer of prisoners

The BJP State president, P S Sreedharan Pillai, also demanded a judicial probe into the clash in the Kannur Central Jail. In a statement here today, Mr. Pillai strongly protested against the discrimination between prisoners, which was unilateral and violation of fundamental rights of the prisoners.

He said that even though the UDF was ruling in the State, it was the CPI (M) that was controlling the reins of administration in Kannur.

Even though the BJP and its feeder organisations had repeatedly complained about the state of affairs in the district, and the prevalent political discrimination, the Government had initiated no action. In fact, the CPI(M) was making an all-out attempt to inflame the situation in Kannur using the prison clash as cover in the context of the Lok Sabha elections.

Mr. Pillai said that the BJP strongly deplored the decision of the jail authorities to shift the prisoners, owing allegiance to the RSS and the BJP from the Kannur to the Thiruvananthapuram Central Jail. Terming the move as violation of the fundamental rights of the prisoners and their relatives, the BJP demanded that the prisoners be sent back to the Kannur jail.

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