Sacking of Roy to make agitation fierce

KOCHI: With the expulsion of C P Roy from the chairmanship of the five-year old Mullaperiyar Samara Samithi, the nature of the agitation is all set to change. The Samithi is likely to shed its peaceful nature and take up a hard stance in the coming days. C P Roy insisted on carrying out the agitation peacefully. In the past, when agitations turned violent, it was Roy who pacified agitators. The initial phase of the movement, headed by Fr Joy Nirappel, saw open protests, Such activities stopped when Roy took charge. He preferred peaceful methods like spreading the issue to different parts, sensitising the people of Tamil Nadu. Roy tried to keep political parties out of the agitation. Agitators could have party affiliations, but the Samithi did not permit political interference. When tremors triggered violence in some parts of Idukki over the safety of the dam, Roy requested the people to maintain peace.“The Samithi should keep its calm. No solution is possible through violence. I wrote a proposal to the Prime Minister because of the government’s lethargy in finding a solution to the issue. I don’t think the CM or P J Joseph can do anything for the safety of the state,” Roy said.“We have no hope over the government to win a verdict in favour of constructing a new dam. So reducing the water to less than 100 feet is the only short-term solution. We can construct another tunnel through which Tamil Nadu can have more water, which will ultimately reduce the water level in the dam and reduce the urgency for a new dam for now. Farmers in Tamil Nadu welcomed the suggestion. The Theni Collector even offered to mediate,” Roy said.  Fr Nirappel said, “The agitation will extended to all parts of the state. The mode of agitation will be changed to hartal, collectorate picketing, protest rallies and human chain.”