Protest against Kerala CM ‘portraying Malappuram district as a hub of anti-national activities’

Protesters condemn Chief Minister for holding Malappuram district and its people responsible for the smuggling activities through Calicut International Airport at Karipur

The Welfare Party of India taking out a protest march with an effigy of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in Malappuram on Monday night. | Photo Credit: Sakeer Hussain

Various organisations staged protest across the district on Monday condemning Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for his remarks allegedly aimed at portraying Malappuram district as a hub of anti-national activities.

The protesters condemned the Chief Minister for holding Malappuram district and its people responsible for the smuggling activities through Calicut International Airport at Karipur. They accused him of trying to implement the agenda of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

Youth Congress

Youth Congress district president Haris Mudur said the Chief Minister lowered his position by implementing the RSS agenda.

Muslim Youth League (MYL) State secretary P.K. Firoz said the Chief Minister’s tongue belonged to the RSS. Muslim Students Federation (MSF) State president P.K. Navas described the Chief Minister as a Communist donning the RSS mantle.

The Welfare Party of India (WPI) burnt the Chief Minister in effigy here on Monday night. “Pinarayi Vijayan, will you please resign and leave?” read a banner raised by the WPI.

The Kerala Muslim Jamaat demanded that those in power, particularly the Chief Minister, withdraw from their move to brand Malappuram as a problem-ridden district. “You are trying to destroy the existing peace in the district,” it said.

It condemned the attempts to fix the responsibility of the alleged illegal activities taking place through the Karipur airport on Malappuram district and its people.

The Sunni Yuvajana Sangham (SYS) said that the Chief Minister’s statements lowered his position.

Correction

PR agency Kaizzen approached The Hindu offering an interview with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. Our journalist interviewed the CM at Kerala House at 9 am on September 29, where two representatives of the PR agency were also present along with the CM. The interview lasted for around 30 minutes. Subsequently, one of the PR representatives requested for the inclusion of details regarding gold smuggling and hawala transactions, which he said were originally made at a press conference by the CM. The representative provided in writing the request for inclusion in the CM’s response, the lines that are now disowned by the CM’s press secretary. Including those lines as CM’s statements of that day was a lapse in journalistic rigour, and should not have happened. We apologise for this error. Editor

Published - September 30, 2024 09:59 pm IST