Crime Branch DySP will investigate the murder of 21-year-old Youth League member Mansoor in Kannur. Kannur Commissioner R Illanko informed the same to media today and added that more officers will be added to the team. He made the announcement alongside Kannur Collector TV Subhash at a press conference following an all-party meeting held on Thursday.
On the other hand, the UDF had boycotted the all-party meeting convened by the district administration in Kannur, where violence erupted following the murder of the Youth League member in Koothuparambu. UDF claims that there is no point in the meeting if the police won’t arrest the accused. “The police and district administration is taking a unilateral stand,” UDF leaders claimed as they marked their protest.
Saying that they are ready for peace talks, they added that so far there has been no proactive effort from the police or the district administration to find the accused or register the arrests. The leaders also expressed outrage over the violence and police crackdown on UDF activists yesterday evening. Allegedly, the police even attacked a student who was scheduled to have appeared for the SSLC examination today.
According to sources, 48 hours after Mansoor’s murder, the police are in possession of only one suspect who was handed over to the officials. The UDF leaders also alleged that the government had tied the hands and feet of the investigating officers. League and UDF leaders warned that protests would be organised across the district.
On the other hand, Kannur is tightly wound following the polling day and several other incidents have come to light. Officials have discovered the head of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s cutout in Mambaram alongside steel bombs. They also uncovered bomb-making materials nearby. They were found behind the Mambaram Telephone Exchange. CPM alleges that the RSS was behind the incident. Party district secretary MV Jayarajan had said that the right-wing forces were deliberately provoking the people when they were about to lose.
Meanwhile, the CPM and BJP clashed in Malayankeezhu. The clash took place just after 10 pm last night. An altercation between activists of both parties culminated in a physical confrontation and a few, including a pregnant woman, were injured. About 10 people from both groups are in police custody, and reportedly, the pregnant wife of a BJP activist was allegedly assaulted.
In Malappuram, UDF and LDF members clashed in Muthedath, leaving one DYFI member and three UDF members injured. According to reports, the clash is a direct result of incidents that happened before the polling. The DYFI member has been moved to a private hospital in Edakkara and three UDF members to a government hospital in Nilambur.
