The Thiruvananthapuram City police on Saturday arrested several activists of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s Mahila Morcha who protested against the alleged police corruption that led to the acquittal of the accused in the rape and murder of a six-year-old child at a tribal settlement in Vandiperiyar in Idukki.
Five Mahila Morcha activists were initially detained after they trespassed into the official residence of State Police Chief Sheikh Darvesh Saheb. While the security lapse pushed the security wing on the defensive, the police claimed they posed as petitioners and had obtained no prior sanction for demonstration.
The incident occurred around 9.30 a.m. when Mr. Saheb was present in his residence. Soon, the police rushed several women police officers to forcibly remove the protesters who raised slogans outside the house.
Later, several Mahila Morcha activists laid siege to the road at Althara Junction as they threatened to escalate the protest. The demonstration turned unruly when the protesters blocked a police jeep and entered into an altercation with the police personnel. The activists were subsequently taken into custody and taken to the Armed Reserve Camp where their arrests were recorded by the Museum police.
The protesters accused the Left Democratic Front government of protecting Arjun, the accused in the Vandiperiyar case, who they alleged was an activist of the CPI(M)-feeder organisation Democratic Youth Federation of India.
