Meghalaya groups protest killings of RSS-BJP workers in Kerala

Image: PTI/Representational

Shillong: Two Civil Society groups in Meghalaya have sought the intervention of President Pranab Mukherjee to stop the attacks on RSS and BJP workers in Kerala allegedly by CPM workers. The groups -- Meghalaya Citizens Forum for Human Rights (MCFHR) and Meghalaya Conscious Citizen Forum (MCCF) -- on Wednesday also staged a sit-in protest in Shillong, condemning these attacks. "In the last 72 years almost 250 workers were killed and just recently from May 2016 till December 2016 eight RSS base BJP workers were killed in different district in Kerala," said MCFHR Convener, S P Sharma. In a memorandum submitted to President Mukherjee through Meghalaya Governor Banwarilal Purohit, the groups said that they had also requested the Kerala Government to this effect and to take necessary steps to announce rehabilitation package and compensation to the family members of the victims and also to the injured. "As of now, 10 RSS and BJP workers have been killed and many injured. The situation has worsened due to the highly partisan approach by the concerned police officers," they said. They also alleged that Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who also holds the Home portfolio, did not respond to the RSS and BJP leaderships' request to visit Kannur district and initiate a move to convene a Peace Committee Meeting to stop the attacks. "It is the duty of the state to provide safety and security to the people of the state without discrimination by the law enforcing authorities and the police act impartially while maintaining law and order," the memorandum stated.