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BJP plans Secretariat march on June 23

By Our Staff Reporter

KOCHI JUNE 7. The BJP will organise a Secretariat march on June 23 demanding a CBI probe into the Marad massacre and compensation to the families of the victims. The party will hold dharna at the Collectorates in all districts the same day.

Announcing this at a press conference here today, the BJP State president, C.K. Padmanabhan, said the Government in general and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) in particular were afraid of a CBI inquiry. The party is convinced that only a CBI probe could bring out the truth, given the fact that the UDF partner, IUML, is involved in the violence. Though the district authorities had sealed the Marad mosque, the Muslim League MP, E. Ahmed, had unlocked it and held prayers there, in a provocative manner. The National Development Front (NDF) agenda is being executed by the Muslim League on various issues. The meeting convened by the Cabinet sub-committee on Marad was boycotted by the party as the Government's sincerity is questionable, he said.

The BJP leader alleged the involvement of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in subversive activities along the coastal areas and a bid to convert Kerala into another Kashmir. The Hindus were being forced in many ways to shift from the coastal areas, he said. The issue had a national implication and only a CBI inquiry would be appropriate, he said. The party's leaders would meet the Governor tomorrow to apprise him of the party's demand.

Mr. Padmanabhan said the relevance of both political fronts in Kerala had been lost in the light of splits and dissidence. The opposing fronts in the State are ready to join hands against the BJP at the Centre, he pointed out. The BJP leader felt that the present political scenario is conducive to the growth of an alternative democratic force.

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