The march taken out by the Youth Congress and Kerala Students Union activists to Kalamassery police station in protest against the alleged high-handedness of police in dealing with protests of opposition political outfits turned violent on Tuesday.
Police lathicharged the protestors outside the station leaving, at last count, at least four police personnel and six protestors admitted in a nearby private hospital with injuries in the resultant melee. The protest march was inaugurated by Youth Congress State President Shafi Parambil.
The situation remains volatile as protestors led by Mr. Parambil and District Congress Committee President Mohammed Shiyas are laying siege to the police station demanding release of the activists who, the leaders alleged, have been illegally detained inside the station and demanding action against the police officials who acted provocatively.
“When we were trying to defuse the tension, police behaved aggressively with us and pushed us around. There were calls to beat us. We are right here and let them beat us,” said Mr. Parambil.
“Police brutally assaulted our activists and didn’t even spare Shafi Parambil and Mohamemd Shiyas. One of our activists was left with a bleeding head,” said Tito Antony, Youth Congress district president.
Protestors alleged that the police initially didn’t even allow the injured activists to be taken to the hospital.
The march was taken out in protest against the alleged action by a male police officer against a KSU woman activist in the absence of women cops during a black flag protest against the chief minister in Kalamassery earlier this month and the case against District Congress Committee president Mohammed Shiyas for a Facebook post that allegedly instigated violence against police.
