A Congress MLA in Kerala alleges that senior police officers tampered with the report concerning his assault during the Nava Kerala Sadas event, prompting a reinvestigation.
Key Points
- Congress MLA A D Thomas claims senior Kerala police officers altered the report on his alleged assault during the 2023 Nava Kerala Sadas.
- Thomas alleges an Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) was involved in modifying the initial Crime Branch report.
- Youth Congress leader Ajay Kuriakose identified ADGP M R Ajithkumar as the officer allegedly involved.
- The Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been asked to investigate the alleged police intervention.
- The UDF government has ordered a reinvestigation into the assault case following a court directive.
Congress MLA from Alappuzha, A D Thomas, who was allegedly assaulted by gunmen of then CM Pinarayi Vijayan during the 2023 Nava Kerala Sadas, on Saturday, claimed that senior police officers intervened to modify the report prepared in connection with the incident.
Allegations of Police Interference
Thomas said an officer in the rank of Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) was involved in this. He didn't reveal the officer's name.
However, his colleague and Youth Congress leader Ajay Kuriakose, who was also allegedly assaulted in the incident, claimed that he came to know through news reports that it was ADGP M R Ajithkumar.
Both of them were speaking to reporters before giving their statements with the Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the government to probe the incident.
SIT Investigation Demands
Thomas and Kuriakose said that the SIT should look into the aspect of the alleged intervention by the senior police officer to modify the initial report prepared by the Crime Branch.
They also said that 4-5 gunmen of the then CM Vijayan had assaulted them, but only two were named as accused and demanded action against all of them.
Government Reinvestigation Order
The UDF government, on May 19, constituted the seven-member SIT headed by Superintendent of Police A P Shoukathali to complete the reinvestigation in the assault case and submit a report within a month.
The move came a day after the state's first Cabinet meeting, chaired by Chief Minister V D Satheesan, decided to order a reinvestigation into the case regarding the incident that occurred during the Nava Kerala Yatra of the then LDF government.
Satheesan had said that when the case came to the court, it had rejected the prosecution's arguments and ordered a reinvestigation.
He alleged that despite the court order, the previous government had failed to act on it for more than a year.
The CM had said that the government was only implementing the court's directive, but added, "We do not forget anything".
Background of the Incident
The alleged incident had led to strong protests by the Congress both inside and outside the Assembly at the time, accusing the then CPI(M)-led government of stifling the voice of the people against the government.
The Nava Kerala Sadas was an outreach programme conducted by the Left government in 2023 and had invited widespread protests from the Congress, its youth and student outfits, which had waved black flags at then chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his entourage.
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