The Kerala government is unlikely to accord clearance for prosecuting two Communist Party of India (Marxist) activists, Alan Shuhaib and Thaha Fazal, arrested under the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) from Kozhikode on Saturday.
The two were accused of having circulated notices criticising the alleged encounter killing of four Maoists in the Manjakkatti forests in Palakkad district.
The arrest has drawn ire from various quarters, mainly from the CPI(M) leaders, including Left Democratic Front convener A.Vijayaraghavan, who reiterated on Sunday that the police were pursuing a course completely against the stated policy of the LDF government on the UAPA issue.
Official sources told The Hindu that the government would strictly go by a procedure laid for charging UAPA cases.
As per the procedure, such cases could be charged only with the clearance of the District Police Chief. An officer of the DYSP rank after investigation should seek permission for prosecution, secure legal opinion and take a final decision only with the concurrence of the government.
The government has constituted an UAPA Authority headed by a retired High Court Judge for granting permission for prosecution. Special Secretaries to Law and Home departments and Inspector-General (Internal Security) are members of the committee. Former High Court Judge P.S. Gopinathan is heading the committee at present.
The government would only go by the recommendations of the authority and, in the current context, may not give permission for prosecution. Earlier, permission for prosecution was denied in nine cases, eight of which were against Maoists, for want of evidence as per the recommendations of the authority, sources said.
