More than 15 persons were injured in clashes between Students Federation of India and Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad activists at Sree Kerala Varma College here on Friday. The injured included students from both sides.
The clash occurred during a meeting organised by former students of the college belonging to the ABVP, Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha and BJP outside the college campus against the alleged violence unleashed by the SFI on the college campus. Organisers of the meeting and SFI activists in the college had a fight for almost an hour, injuring many students.
They threw stones at each other. The injured were admitted to various hospitals in the city. A girl student who was witnessing the clash collapsed at the venue.
Unrest in the college started sometime back after International Women’s Day celebrations.
The SFI students and teachers of the college had an altercation over erecting flex boards for the programme for the women’s day. Activists of the SFI forcefully removed the flex boards and even manhandled a woman teacher. Former students belonging to the ABVP and Yuva Morcha organised a protest meeting demanding an end to violence by the SFI.
The violence erupted soon after the meeting started. The SFI alleged that the ABVP activists attacked students who reached for practice of the D-zone tournament. However, the ABVP alleged that SFI activists threw stones at the meeting first. Stones and bricks lay scattered on the road in front of the college. The police later dispersed the agitators.
BJP State vice president and councillor M.S. Sampoorna; State secretary B. Gopalakrishnan; councillors V. Ravunny, K. Mahesh, and Vinshy Arunkumar; and Victoria College former Principal Sarasu were there to attend the meeting.
Christ College incident
Meanwhile, at Christ College, Irinjalakuda, various student organisations conducted a strike on Friday. A degree student had attempted suicide on Thursday as the college authorities allegedly refused to give him permission to appear for examination as he did not have sufficient attendance.
Students alleged that the management’s action forced the student to take the extreme step.
