The Hindu : Kerala / Kochi News : 56 political murders in Kannur in a decade

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Kerala - Kochi

56 political murders in Kannur in a decade

Special Correspondent

KOCHI: Fifty-six people have fallen victim to political violence in Kannur district in the past decade.

This was revealed by the Kannur district police in reply to a request made under the Right to Information Act by Proper Channel, a Kochi NGO.

The figures related to the period from January 1, 1997 to March 15, 2008. In the past two months, two more lost their lives.

Most of them were activists of either the Communist Party of India (Marxist) or the Bharatiya Janata Party/Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

The number of murdered persons on the two sides is almost equal. The killed included a 58-year-old woman, who was the mother of six, and a 62-year-old man.

In Panur

The largest number of political murders took place in the Panur police station limits — 13.

The other murders were in Kannur, Taliparambu, Iritti, Thalassery, Dharmadam, Koothuparambu, Kodiyeri, and Kolavalloor police station limits.

While the majority of those charged with the murders had been acquitted by the courts, some were sentenced to life. None has received a death penalty. In a number of cases, those who were convicted by the trial courts were acquitted by the High Court.

M.K. Haridas, president of Proper Channel, pointed out that a half of those killed were married and left behind widows and children.

“The political violence in Kannur, mainly between the CPI(M) and RSS/BJP in the last 10 years has left 56 mourning families, apart from hundreds of friends and other relatives,” Mr. Haridas pointed out.

He noted that all-party meetings had been held after many murders, but these, he alleged, were mere farce.

Mr. Haridas said it was high time the people of the State took the initiative to end the serial murders in the name of politics. He pointed out that each of the murders was used by the political parties concerned to win votes in the elections.

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