Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] State unit secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan on Sunday said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s Parliamentary delegation to Kannur was only a vain attempt to divert people’s attention from the violence perpetrated by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
Reacting to the delegation’s statement here, Mr. Balakrishnan called on the BJP leadership to keep its cadres in check before talking about political violence in the State.
Peace will return to Kannur and other parts of Kerala if the RSS laid down its weapons.
During the last four months, four CPI(M) workers were brutally killed in political violence. After the elections, over 35 party offices were attacked, 300 workers were injured and over 80 houses were damaged in the violence led by the RSS. The CPI(M) office in Cheruvancheri was attacked 30 times, he said.
He accused the RSS-BJP leadership of amassing ammunition, including crude bombs.
‘A veiled threat’
The delegation’s call for deploying paramilitary forces in Kannur was a veiled threat that the Centre would not hesitate to intervene in Kannur.
The CPI(M) was willing to offer unconditional cooperation to restore peace, but it could not be intimidated by veiled threats of Central intervention, he said.
