Mananthavady bishop Mar Jose Porunnedam has urged the government to withdraw cases registered against those who had protested at Pulpally against the recurring wildlife attacks in Wayanad district. The police had registered four cases against 156 people and arrested two on Monday in connection with the violent protests in Pulpally on Saturday.
The bishop said the police had registered cases against youngsters, including women, who were waiting to get jobs abroad. The move of the police would affect their prospects. “If the police registered cases against them will it solve the problem,” he asked. He also slammed the government for its “failure to prevent human-animal conflict in the district.”
Cases registered
Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee working president T. Siddique, MLA, said the police had registered cases against a group of protesters who allegedly hurled bottles at him, despite him clarifying that he had no complaints. The move was to set the stage for the visit of Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran to the district without major protests, he said.
Congress leader K. Muraleedharan, MP, said his party would launch a protest if the police did not withdraw the cases. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) district president K.P. Madhu alleged that the police registered cases against a section of people, instead of bringing to book those responsible for the violence.
Mr. Saseendran responded that he police registered cases only against those who destroyed public property. He said he wished to visit the houses of the wildlife attack victims and the date of the visit would be decided after an all-party meeting on Tuesday.
UDF protest
Meanwhile, the UDF district committee will stage a ‘rapakal samaram’ in front of the collectorate here on Tuesday in protest against the apathy of the Union and State governments in adopting effective steps to mitigate the human-wildlife conflict. Mr. Muraleedharan will inaugurate the protest at 9 a.m. on Tuesday.
