The Secretariat and its vicinity turned into a battleground as demonstrations taken out by Opposition parties demanding the resignation of Higher Education Minister K.T. Jaleel turned violent on Saturday.
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Several protesters were injured as the State capital was kept on tenterhooks for the second day. The controversy continued to trigger mass protests, even as the government remained on the edge over the surge in COVID-19 cases in the capital district.
Security was strengthened outside the Secretariat and near Mr. Jaleel’s official residence since late Friday after Youth Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) activists clashed with the police, leaving nine people injured.
The series of protests outside the Secretariat got underway by 9.30 a.m. While the initial demonstrations organised by smaller parties passed off peacefully, tension went up after the Mahila Congress burnt the Minister’s effigy. Soon, the IUML and Youth League also marched to the Secretariat, but were dispersed after being fired with water jets.
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The joint demonstration taken out next by the BJP, Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha and ABVP witnessed around a hundred activists adopting aggressive tactics to counter the police. With the protesters remaining firm on their positions despite the police using water cannons at least five times, the law enforcers resorted to firing tear gas shells thrice and grenade once.
The situation came to a head when an activist entered the Secretariat premises by scaling the compound wall. The agitators were lathicharged after they attempted to prevent the police from taking the activist into custody. Five protesters were injured in the melee.
Later, the Youth Congress staged a demonstration that was led by K.S. Sabarinadhan, MLA. The police sprayed water jets on the agitators as they attempted to topple the barricades. This led to a minor altercation with the police.