Government violating human rights, says Kodiyeri

CPM politburo member Kodiyeri Balakrishnan has alleged that the state government was dealing with the CPM as if it was a banned outfit.

He was addressing a news conference here on Monday after visiting CPM leaders P Jayarajan and T V Rajesh MLA at the Central Jail.

“The state government is indulging in blatant violation of human rights against CPM rank and file in Kannur. Before the peace meeting, the police nabbed 56 partymen and brutally tortured them. After the meeting, 13 suffered injuries in police custody,” he said. Kodiyeri accused the police of violating the rules of the Kerala Police Act, which came into effect last year.

“The police are using third degree torture methods against CPM-men in jails. The Police Complaints Authority should conduct an inquiry into the harassment and torturing by the police,” he said.

The former home minister also alleged that police personnel were functioning as if they were Congress activists.

“As of now, the police have registered cases against 3,000 partymen. Of this, nearly 800 persons have been arrested. The arrested persons include those who were engaged in the election squad work for the Mattanur municipal election. Nearly 1,300 people are locked in the Central Prison, which has the capacity of accommodating 800 people,” he added.