Heavy police presence for anti-pipeline march today

Anti-GAIL protest will be peaceful, affirms action committee

The police conduct a route march in Mukkom on Monday. As many as six Additional Superintendents of Police will lead the special squads.

Police chiefs of Kozhikode city, Kozhikode Rural, Wayanad and Malappuram districts will keep an eye on the march to be taken out by anti-GAIL pipeline activists to the GAIL project site at Nellikkaparambu on Tuesday. As many as six Additional Superintendents of Police from these police districts, along with trainee IPS officers, too will be present to lead the special squads.

M.I. Shanawaz, MP, will inaugurate the march. Peoples’ representatives and local body heads are expected to join the mass protest demanding speedy implementation of the revised compensation package for landholders in the project area.

The police said that of the 385 squad members to be deployed on Tuesday, 90 would be women civil police officers. On Monday, they conducted a route march in Mukkom. According to the police, the specially trained women CPOs are part of the deployment in the light of the Special Branch report that a large number of women and children are likely to join the protest. “We have instructed our personnel to stay restrained throughout the march. There will be no action on our part to disrupt any peaceful protest,” said Thamarassery Deputy Superintendent of Police P.C. Sajeevan. At the same time, any attempt to create law and order issues will be sternly dealt with, he added.

No prior permission

The police said the coordination committee of protesters had not secured prior permission for the march. Moreover, they have not provided details of the protest plan to any of the police stations.

During the last demonstration, protesters had locked horns with the police, alleging manhandling attempts by the latter. The police too had resorted to lathi-charge then to disperse the crowd. Hundreds of locals were arrested on charges of manhandling police personnel and damaging public property.

Meanwhile, leaders of the Anti-GAIL Pipeline Action Committee affirmed that their protest would be peaceful by all means, and that the propaganda that it would turn violent was baseless. Last time, the police had acted callously against protesters, and such instances will not be tolerated again, they said.

“We have not sought police permission for the march as they will never grant it. It is a totally false propaganda that we have secretly urged participants to act aggressively in case of police action,” said C.P. Chriayamohammed, State convener of the committee.