Condemning the spurt in murders with caste overtones in Tirunelveli and Tuticorin districts, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) cadres observed a fast here on Tuesday.
Led by party’s State secretary G. Ramakrishnan, the party cadres observed the fast at Jawahar Grounds, Palayamkottai.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Ramakrishnan said the people of these two districts had lost peace after the sudden increase in murders in the past one year, mostly because of the clashes among different communities. The murders, which were result of usury, illegal sand mining and caste affiliation, could have been prevented. However, lack of appropriate action from police had resulted in murders.
“When the issue was raised in the Assembly by the CPI (M) MLAs, permission was denied for them, and hence the party legislators staged a walkout. The Chief Minister claims that absolute peace was prevailing in Tamil Nadu at a time when two districts have witnessed nearly 100 murders in just a year. Hence, we appeal to the public to judge the situation and join hands to ensure peace and amity everywhere. The police and the revenue administration should help in every effort being taken here to bring back normality,” Mr. Ramakrishnan said.
He demanded stringent action against those who were involved in illicit sand mining and usury. The case pertaining to the suicide of Agricultural Engineering Department officer S. Muthukumarasamy should be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation to bring out the truth, he added.
Party office-bearers M.N.S. Venkatraman, S. Noor Mohamed, K. Kanagaraj, K.G. Bhaskaran, K.S. Arjunan, R. Karumalaiyan and others participated in the fast.
