The late-night murders of a CPI(M) local leader of Mahe and an RSS worker near Mahe on Monday have left the politically volatile parts in and around the area tense. The Puducherry and Kerala Police are on high alert to avert further escalation of the situation.
The murder of Kannipoyil Babu, 47, former councillor of the Mahe municipality, by alleged RSS workers near the Koyyodam Koroth temple under the Palloor police station limits in Mahe around 9.30 p.m. Monday was followed by a retaliatory attack on RSS worker U.C. Shanej, an autorickshaw driver, half an hour later at nearby New Mahe, near Thalassery, by a group of suspected CPI(M) workers.
Shanej was dragged out of his autorickshaw and stabbed, the police said. Having received multiple stab injuries, he died on the way to Government Medical College Hospital, Kozhikode. Babu was found in a pool of blood as he was attacked on his way home on his two-wheeler.
The Palloor police said political enmity was the motive behind the murder of Babu. Though there was no immediate provocation for the latest political murder in the area, the Palloor police said there were large-scale bomb attacks at Palloor in December 2016. The police said there had been attempts on Babu’s life earlier too.
Mahe Superintendent of Police C.H. Radhakrishna, who cancelled his leave and is on his way to Mahe, said an investigation was under way to nab the culprits behind the murders at Palloor. Right now the situation was under control, he told The Hindu over phone.
Apart from minor issues of political rivalry between the CPI(M) and the BJP, Palloor is not known for any major rivalry between the rival parties. The area, however, borders the politically sensitive parts of Kannur district, including Chokli and New Mahe.
The Mahe police sought the assistance of the Kerala Police here for deployment of personnel in the trouble-torn areas in view of the tension during the funeral of the slain CPI(M) local leader. The body was brought to Palloor around 4 p.m. after postmortem at the Pariyaram medical college hospital. The body of Shanej was brought home late in the evening after postmortem from the Kozhikode hospital.
