A group of armed people, suspected to be Maoists, vandalised a hotel of the Kerala Tourism Development Corporation (KTDC) here in the early hours of Sunday.
A.R. Premkumar, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mananthavady, told The Hindu that six persons, including two women, barged into the Tamarind Easy Hotel and broke the glass door panels of the reception centre, office, and restaurant. They destroyed furniture, two computers, a television, a photocopy machine, a printer, and a phone kept at the reception counter.
They also destroyed crockery kept in the storeroom, furniture in the cafeteria, and a fridge in the kitchen.
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They fled after sticking posters demanding an end to activities of resorts in tribal and forest areas in the district. Posters on behalf of the CPI-Maoist read: ‘‘January 26: Sham Republic Day and kick out yanki monster Obama.’’ Posters pasted on the walls near the hotel gate called to intensify class struggle to strengthen armed agrarian revolution in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Karnataka and establish people's authority over land, water, and forest.
There were 25 occupants, including children, in the hotel when the incident took place, P.J. Augustine, manager of the hotel, said. But the miscreants did not disturb them, he said.
The hotel suffered loss to the tune of Rs.5 lakh in the attack, he said.
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Senior revenue and police officers, including Sub Collector Sreram Sambasiva Rao, District Police Chief Putta Vimaladitya, and police forensic experts visited the hotel.
Case registered
“A case has been registered in connection with the incident and the police have strengthened security in the area,” Mr. Vimaladitya said.