Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan has taken strong exception to the recommendation by the police to impose the Kerala Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act (KAAPA) against Youth Congress Leader Farseen Majeed, who allegedly organised a protest against Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in an aircraft.
“This is not Stalin’s Russia to impose KAAPA for protesting bearing black flags. Let me remind the Chief Minister that this is Kerala,” Mr. Satheesan said here on Friday. He added that the Congress would resist moves by the State government to silence protests using KAAPA as a weapon.
“The Chief Minister said there were 19 criminal cases against Farseen. The truth is that 12 of them were registered for violating the COVID-19 protocol to hold protests. It is unclear as to why KAAPA is imposed for such crimes at this point of time,” Mr. Satheesan said.
He asked why action was not taken against a Students’ Federation of India (SFI) leader who had 40 criminal cases registered against him for serious crimes such as kidnapping, attempt to murder, offences against women, and using weapons against fellow students.
Mr. Satheesan also questioned the move by Kannur university to challenge Governor Arif Mohammad Khan’s decision to freeze the appointment of Priya Varghese. “The Governor took the decision in accordance with university rules. He has only frozen the appointment,” Mr. Satheesan said. He also requested the Governor to order an investigation into all appointments in universities over the last six years and take necessary action if discrepancies were found.
