Kerala - Kollam   

CI attacked during raid on spirit den still in critical state

Staff Reporter

Chief Minister's intervention sought to bring the culprits to book

Kollam: Condition of S. Jayakumar, Excise Circle Inspector, who was seriously injured in an attack by an armed gang during a surprise raid on a secret spirit godown in Kariyilakulangara in Alappuzha district early on Sunday, continues to be critical. He is under treatment at a private hospital here.

Hospital authorities said on Monday that he continued to be on ventilator and was under observation. The condition of three other officials who were attacked was improving, the authorities added. Minister for Food and Civil Supplies C. Divakaran visited the officials.

Congress charge

Our Alappuzha Staff Reporter adds:

The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Alappuzha district unit has come under criticism following the seizure of 10,500 litres of spirit from the wife's house of M. Bhaskaran, party Alappuzha district committee member and Pathiyoor panchayat president, at Kariyilakulangara and the alleged attack on an excise team that raided the house by a local leader of the Democratic Youth Federation of India, Aji Kumar.

Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee secretary Johnson Abraham and District Congress Committee secretary A.A. Shukkoor said at a press conference here on Monday that a big racket having connections with top CPI(M) leaders was involved in the issue. A special investigation team of the police, under an officer not below the rank of deputy inspector-general, should be constituted to investigate the case. The Congress leaders demanded that Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan intervene in the issue and help bring to book the culprits. There was a move to make Mr. Bhaskaran and his relatives scapegoats in the case and save the top leaders.

He said though the excise team had informed the Kariyilakulangara police on the raid, it did not receive any help. That pointed to a police-politician-mafia nexus in Karthikappally taluk in the district.

Attack condemned

Our Thiruvananthapuram Special Correspondent adds:

The Kerala State Excise Officers' Association has condemned the attack.

In a statement here on Monday, E. Shihabudeen, president of the association, and P.K. Sanu, general secretary, demanded the immediate arrest of the culprits in this case and those behind an attack on the Chengannur Excise Inspector. They warned that the officers would be demoralised otherwise.

They alleged that neglect of the association's repeated pleas for modernising the force, considering the amendments to Abkari laws and changes in society, was responsible for the incident. Availability of the officers stood at the 1967 level and the weapons available to them were just lathis, even after Abkari offences were made serious offences and punishment for them made strong. While the liquor mafia used modern communication system and new-generation transport and weapons, many excise offices were plagued by shortage of these and men.

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