A clash broke out between the police and local people at Avikkal Thodu in Kozhikode in connection with a Janasabha for Vellayil ward, here on Monday.
The Janasabha was organised by Secular Voice, Vellayil, a Communist Party of India (Marxist)-supported cultural organisation, at the Government Fisheries LP School at Vellayil to clear the doubts of people in Ward 66 (Vellayil) of Kozhikode city Corporation regarding the proposed Sewage Treatment Plant at Avikkal Thodu. However, the protest committee members and some of the local people alleged that they were not invited to the Janasabha and they were not allowed to take part in it.
Road blocked
The police intervened to remove the protesters from the meeting venue even before it started. Following this, the protest committee members sat down on the coastal highway, creating a road block for more than an hour. They used wood, stones and plastic baskets to block the road. They also burnt tyres. Several people were injured in the police caning later. Some people were arrested.
Protesters block the coastal highway at Avikkal in Kozhikode. | Photo Credit: K. Ragesh
The protesters questioned why they could not take part in a meeting meant for the residents of ward 66, especially since they were the ones who would be the most affected, living close to the proposed site of the STP. They alleged that the CPI(M) had brought people from other parts of the city to take part in the meeting and create an impression that the local people favoured the plant.
Organisers’ stand
However, the organisers maintained that they did not invite the protest committee as it was not a meeting organised by the Corporation. The meeting was for those who favoured the plant, but had doubts.
Meanwhile, the Janasabha chaired by Health standing committee chairperson of the Corporation S. Jayasree continued at the venue. A similar Janasabha in ward 67 on Saturday too had turned violent due to the same reasons. Thottathil Raveendran, MLA, who had inaugurated the Janasabha, had to be escorted out amidst the tense situation.
