The special squad probing the Nitta Gelatin corporate office attack case has invoked the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) against the nine unidentified men who carried out the action.
“The charges are being invoked on the suspicion that members of a couple of banned organisations are involved in the action. However, we are yet to confirm if they belong to any Maoist organisations, though the pamphlets distributed by them claimed it to be the handiwork of CPI (Maoists),’’ said K.G. James, City Police Commissioner, on Tuesday.
As part of the investigation, the police have taken into custody a few Maoist sympathisers for interrogation. However, no concrete information regarding the attackers is available as of now. “They are being questioned on the suspicion of aiding the attackers. No arrests have been made yet and hence their names can’t be revealed at this point of time. They will be questioned and released if found to have no links with the attackers,” the official added.
Meanwhile, sources said the probe had been expanded beyond the district on an assumption that the gang members could be from outside the district.
The corporate office of Nitta Gelatin India Ltd (NGIL) at Panampilly Nagar in Kochi was attacked by a group of masked men on Monday causing extensive damage. The group carried out the attack after accusing the company of environment pollution and its neglect to employ local people.
KMA condemns attackMeanwhile, the Kerala Management Association (KMA) condemned the attack on NGIL, saying that it was deeply shocked by the incident and appealed to authorities to take stern action against perpetrators of the crime. “These incidents are only likely to discourage investments in the State and dampen the business confidence,” it said, in a statement.
