The protest march taken out by the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) towards the state police headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram turned violent on Saturday (23rd December). The protest march was against the statewide police highhandedness on Youth Congress activists during Nava Kerala Sadas. Senior Congress leaders and activists clashed with police. Police resorted to using water canons and tear gas shells against them. Many of the protesting Congress members were thus hospitalised.
#WATCH | Congress workers in Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram march to the DGP office and clash with police during a protest against alleged police action on Youth Congress workers during a demonstration on December 20 pic.twitter.com/GXiFGU6FKH
— ANI (@ANI) December 23, 2023
KPCC President K Sudhakaran, opposition leader VD Satheesan, former opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala, MPs including Shashi Tharoor, and other MLAs were among those affected by the police’s use of tear gas and water cannons. The leaders experienced breathlessness and eye pain following the tear gas attack and were shifted to Sree Rama Krishna Mission Hospital at Sasthamangalam for treatment. Anwar Sadhath MLA, Jeby Mather MP, and Chandy Oommen were also reported to be hospitalised.
The incident occurred when the protesters, led by Sudhakaran and Satheesan, reached Althara junction where the police had erected barricades. As Satheesan began speaking, some activists attempted to push through the barricades, prompting the police to respond with water cannons. The situation escalated as protesters retaliated by pelting stones, leading the police to fire tear gas shells multiple times.
VIDEO | Police use water cannon and tear gas to disperse UDF workers holding protest march to DGP office in #Thiruvananthapuram against alleged attack on Congress workers by DYFI and police.#Kerala
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 23, 2023
(Full video available on PTI Videos – https://t.co/n147TvqRQz) pic.twitter.com/ppFcyrbViy
Shashi Tharoor, Thiruvananthapuram MP, condemned the police action, stating, “There are some protocols for using water cannons and tear gas shells. The police have violated this. I have called the DGP. He told me that he was unaware and would take prompt action. I will point this out in Parliament in the coming session. I still have the burning sensation on my face due to the shell attack.”
VIDEO | "I am utterly shocked about it, and I have spoken on strong terms to DGP about it. A peaceful rally was going on, the Leader of Opposition (VD Satheesan) was speaking, the KPCC president (K Sudhakaran) had spoken before that, and there was a quiet, calm audience listening… pic.twitter.com/Ohf2i2XIPs
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 23, 2023
Echoing Tharoor’s sentiments, MP Kodikunnil Suresh also condemned the police’s actions, describing them as premeditated and unprovoked. K Sudhakaran, from the hospital, accused the ‘police goons’ of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan of instigating the violence. Congress MP K Muraleedharan attributed the attack to the desperation of Pinarayi Vijayan over the failure of the Nava Kerala Sadas.
In his statement, VD Satheesan criticised the police’s actions as unprecedented and directed by the Chief Minister, alleging that the police force was being controlled by certain individuals in the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO).
The Congress leaders, post-incident, staged a sit-in in front of the KPCC office at Vellayambalam for approximately half an hour. As the protest unfolded, Congress workers clashed with the police and blocked main roads, leading to tense situations in the city.
Notably, the leftist parties which currently govern the state, are constituents of the I.N.D.I. alliance, spearheaded by the Congress at a national level. This coalition has been positioning itself as a significant contender against Narendra Modi’s BJP-led NDA in the forthcoming 2024 general elections. However, the recent events in Kerala, where these alliance partners are in direct conflict, underline the intricate and often contradictory nature of the I.N.D.I. alliance raising questions about the coherence and unity within the alliance as it prepares to take on the BJP in the national electoral arena.
