By Shankar Raj*
Thiruvananthapuram: Amidst growing violence, a major agricultural crisis and widespread criticism over his holiday abroad, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan cut short his stay in Singapore and flew to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from where he is expected to return to the state on Monday, May 20, 2024.
The move comes against a spate of violence that has shaken the state. Opposition party leader VD Satheesan said there is complete lawlessness in the state. The Chief Minister handles the Home Department and the police and he is abroad holidaying while there is a macabre dance of violence in the state.
“The CM’s return will not change the situation as the state is under the grip of Left party goondas who are in cahoots with the police,” he said.
The latest in a series of violence came on May 14 night when a four-member gang in Amboor on the outskirts of the capital unleashed an attack for over two hours in the night under the influence of drugs.
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People of the locality said the police did not intervene though the terror lasted for two hours. Four persons, in three bikes, blocked the road and attacked those who came that way.
Last week, a gang hacked to death Akhil, a fish vendor in Karamana, again in Thiruvananthapuram. The members of the gang dropped a rock on Akhil after bludgeoning his head in a gang war-related murder.
Amid criticism of police inaction, the Thiruvananthapuram police yesterday initiated the operation ‘Action Against Gunda’ (AAG), targeting gang members in the capital district. The raids are ongoing in parts of Thiruvananthapuram.
In Kochi, the police did nothing to register a complaint by a woman who was brutally beaten up by her husband five days into her marriage. Amid criticism that the police did nothing, the Station House Officer (SHO) was suspended. Meanwhile, the husband, Rahul Gopal, an engineer working in Germany, had enough time to abscond.
On the agricultural front, paddy production in the state has dwindled by around 30% due to the scorching conditions. Cash crop farmers too have lost huge amounts due to the destruction of cardamom following the unprecedented summer heat.
Yet, there is no word from the government on such vital issues as there is nobody in control of the state.
*Shankar Raj is a former editor of The New Indian Express, Karnataka and Kerala, and writes regularly on current affairs.
