Students Federation of India (SFI) and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) members clashed on the campus of Government ITI, Chandanathope, here on Wednesday following the arrival of National Democratic Front (NDA) candidate for the Kollam Lok Sabha constituency G. Krishnakumar for electioneering.
ADVERTISEMENT
Reacting to the incident Mr. Krishnakumar said that the leadership was using the students as they feared an electoral defeat. “The United Democratic Front (UDF) and the Left Democratic Front (LDF) candidates had visited the campus before me and I was told by SFI members that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate is not welcome. They always talk about fascism in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, but a person like me who was born and brought up in Kerala was denied entry to the campus. This is real fascism,” he said.
Complaints filed
The candidate added that he could not be intimidated with violence. The police and teachers had to intervene to defuse the tension on the campus while the BJP mandalam committee has filed complaints with the police and college Principal demanding strict action against the students.
Violation of poll code
Meanwhile, the SFI leadership has sought action against Mr. Krishnakumar for violating the Model Code of Conduct. “It was decided that Principal Sajeev will hand over prizes to the winners of sports competition organised by the college union. But without any warning, ABVP activists announced that the BJP candidate will inaugurate the event. They had also brought many Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) members and persons accused in criminal cases to the campus, creating tension. It is a violation of the Model Code of Conduct to participate in official programmes organised by the college union of a government college and turn them into a platform for political campaign,” they said in a statement.