KL This Week: KPCC and Tharoor at Loggerheads, Clashes Erupt in Vizhinjam

Shashi Tharoor, the MP from Thiruvananthapuram seems to be in a tug-of-war with the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC). The party leadership is unhappy with the MP’s tour in the Malabar districts and has unofficially advised the office-bearers against attending his events. The KPPC leadership and prominent leaders are divided over the stand of both KPCC and Tharoor.

Tension prevailed at the Vizhinjam International Seaport Limited (VISL) site after clashes erupted when the construction work was restarted. Two groups, supporting and opposing the construction of the ports clashed, injuring people including policemen.

Two persons, including a member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] were brutally killed allegedly by a drug mafia in Thalassery of Kannur district. The police are on the hunt for the killers. The left democratic front (LDF) government has launched an extensive campaign against the usage of drugs.

A boat capsised in Bharathapuzha river in the Malappuram district, killing two men and two women. The bodies of the men were found hours after an extensive search operation.

The Supreme Court refused to stay the Kerala High Court order removing the Vice Chancellor of the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS). NewsClick brings a round-up of the happenings across Kerala this week.

THAROOR TAKES ON KPCC LEADERSHIP

The tussle between Shashi Tharoor and the state leadership escalated after he refused to refrain from making public comments on the party affairs. The KPCC president K Sudhakaran had advised leaders to show restraint after the trouble escalated.

Earlier, the KPCC unofficially banned programmes hosting Tharoor, setting up a war of words among different leaders and the ranks and file of the party. The Kozhikode district committee of the youth congress backed away from an event after the party’s unofficial ban.

But the programme was held as per schedule, with Tharoor claiming warm reception from the leaders of the party and the public. MPs K Muraleedharan and M K Raghave opposed the KPCC’s stand on the ban and claimed that the move will damage the image of the party.

The tension between KPCC and Tharoor came to the surface soon after he announced his intention to contest in the AICC presidential election. The KPCC sided with Mallikarjuna Kharge.

TENSION IN VIZHINJAM

The attempts to restart the construction works of the VISL have hit another roadblock, as clashes erupted on November 26. The fisherfolk, opposed to the construction of the port, blocked vehicles carrying construction materials, who were further opposed by the supporters of the port.

Several policemen and a few people sustained injuries during the clash, leading to heavy deployment of police at the construction site.

TWO KILLED, DRUG MAFIA ACCUSED OF MURDERS

The Kannur police have formed five special teams to hunt down the purported killers of two people, including a CPI(M) member on November 24. Seven people have been arrested so far by the police for their alleged involvement in the twin murders.

Khaleed was a CPI(M) member and Shameer was a sympathiser of the party. They were killed allegedly for their struggle against the drug menace in the locality. A scuffle had taken place a day earlier in which a relative of the deceased was injured and subsequently hospitalised.

SC REFUSES TO STAY HC ORDER ON KUFOS VC

The Supreme Court refused to stay the order of Kerala High Court removing Dr Riji John from the Vice Chancellor (VC) post of the KUFOS. The court also stopped the state government from appointing a new VC until further orders are passed.

PROTEST AGAINST SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT

The residents in Kothi in Kozhikode are continuing their protest against the construction of a sewage treatment plant (STP) by the Kozhikode Corporation. The corporation has requested police protection for the construction of the compound wall of the plant. The Congress and the residents of three wards of the corporation observed a hartal against the construction of the STP on Friday.

FOUR KILLED AS BOAT CAPSIZES

Two men and two women drowned to death as the boat they were travelling in sank in the Bharathapuzha river in Malappuram district on November 19.  Six members of the family were travelling in the same boat. High tides were cited as the reason behind the accident.

AIDWA STATE CONFERENCE CONCLUDES

The 13th state conference of the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) concluded with a massive public meeting in Alappuzha on November 23.

The conference extended solidarity to the workers fighting against the privatisation of public sector undertakings. The three-day conference passed resolutions against the increasing violence against minorities, Dalits, and women across the country.