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Day after SDPI worker’s murder, RSS leader hacked to death in Palakkad
The incident occurred less than 24 hours after a Popular Front of India (PFI) leader was killed in a village near Palakkad, Kerala, allegedly by the BJP.
Kerala on Saturday witnessed a second political murder within a span of 24 hours in Palakkad district, where an RSS leader was hacked to death in the afternoon by a bike-borne gang, which the police suspect as a retaliation to the murder of a SDPI worker the previous day.
S K Srinivasan (45), a former district leader and office-bearer of RSS, was attacked by a six-member gang at his motorbike shop in Melamuri near here, police said. The incident occurred less than 24 hours after a SDPI worker was killed in a village near here, allegedly by the RSS.
While the BJP and the opposition Congress trained their guns on the ruling Left government saying the incident point at the worsening law and order situation in the state, the district administration on Saturday issued prohibitory orders till April 20.
ADGP (Law and Order) Vijay Sakhare will camp at Palakkad town to coordinate the investigation while three companies of Kerala Armed Police have reached the district to maintain the security.
Following the RSS leader’s murder, locals have closed shops in the nearby areas and the police have increased the security. The CCTV visuals from the nearby shops, which was aired by TV channels, show the assailants riding three motorbikes reaching the shop and three of them attacking Srinivasan.
A massive manhunt has been launched by the police to nab the culprits who fled the scene after committing the murder of the RSS leader.
Meanwhile, the police have warned that stern action will be taken against those who try to incite communal tension through social media in the backdrop of Palakkad murders.
The state police chief has given instruction to monitor social media activity in the state to control the spread of any fake news that may incite communal tensions.
Earlier in the day, the opposition Congress came down heavily on the Left government alleging that the increasing number of communal and political murders happening in the state nowadays was a result of communal appeasement being done by CM Pinarayi Vijayan.
The BJP also attacked the Left government and said the law and order situation in the state has been deteriorating even while the Home Ministry was handled by the Chief Minister himself.
Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly V D Satheesan said the police force have become mute spectators of violence and murders with people living under fear as there is no protection for their life and property. However, the DYFI, the youth wing of the CPI(M), said the back-to-back murders were part of the RSS-SDPI plan to create riots and communal unrest in the state.
“The people of the state need to understand the attempts to create communal divide and must reject the attempts of communal polarisation,” DYFI said in a statement.
SDPI is the political offshoot of the PFI.
CPI(M) district secretary E N Suresh Babu said the RSS and the SDPI were trying to create and spread unrest in Palakkad district.
Union minister V Muraleedharan said the murder of the RSS worker in broad daylight was the latest example of the deteriorating law and order situation in Kerala.
Meanwhile, police on Saturday took into custody four RSS workers in connection with the murder of Subair the previous day.
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