The government and Opposition locked horns in the Assembly on Wednesday in a politically charged debate over the law and order situation in the State.
IUML legislator N. Shamshudeen’s notice seeking adjournment of the House for an emergency debate on “political killings and general breakdown of public order” triggered a spirited debate.
Mr. Shamshudeen fired the first salvo by quoting a retired woman officer who claimed on television recently that she had to struggle against misogyny in the force and had once saved a woman constable from falling prey to the sexual advances of a ranking male officer.
CM hits back
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan sidestepped the specific allegation but fiercely defended the government’s policing record.
He attempted to turn the table on the Opposition by targetting the KPCC leadership for "approving" the Congress activist who stabbed to death SFI activist Dheeraj in Idukki. recently.
Mr. Vijayan said political opportunism had blinded the Opposition to the intrigues of the SDPI and the BJP to incite communal violence in Kerala.
For one, the Congress had singularly refrained from condemning the BJP and the SDPI for the tit-for-tat political killings in Alappuzha.
Moreover, the Opposition had no case that the police had failed to arrest criminals or favoured them. The UDF’s notice was a damp squib, he said.
Opposition charge
Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan berated Mr. Vijayan for "allowing" religious extremists and criminals a free rein.
Political murders were on an upward spiral. The government was in cahoots with the SDPI and the RSS. In Kumbalam panchayat in Palakkad, the CPI(M) had teamed up with the BJP to topple Congress rule. In the Irattupetah municipality in Kottayam, the CPI(M) colluded with the SDPI to keep the UDF away from power, he said.
The ruling front's symbiotic association with reactionary outfits had precluded the law enforcements from acting against them. Notably, CPI leader Annie Raja had said an RSS cell controlled the police.
Mr. Satheesan said the police answered to local CPI(M) satraps and not their supervisory officers. Ethical and empathetic policing were the causalities of the CPI(M) 's "cell rule".
The UDF later walked out of the House after Speaker M.B. Rajesh denied the adjournment motion.
