District Panchayat chiefs house attacked, vehicle torched

Thiruvananthapuram District Panchayat president Ramani P Nair’s house at Valiyakattaykal, near here, was attacked by miscreants in the wee hours of Friday. Her official vehicle was also badly damaged as it was set ablaze by unidentified attackers, who arrived on a motorbike after 1 am.

The fuel tank of the Scorpio van and other accessories were gutted after the vehicle caught fire from a torch thrown by the attackers.

When Ramani and her husband Prabhakaran Nair, a retired RDO, came out of  the house,  the attackers pelted stones smashing the window panes.

The van rolled out in the intensity of the fire and was blocked by the locked gate.

Local people who rushed to the house doused the fire, minimising the damage.

The needle of suspicion on the attack is pointed towards the CPM, going by the widespread violence unleashed by the cadre across the state in protest against the arrest of Kannur district secretary P Jayarajan.

There is another version that the attack was the fallout of a local rift in connection with the inaugural function of a new building in the Venjaramood HSS. It is said that the president’s house was targeted thrice by attackers in recent days.

 However, Ramani said that it was clear who all were behind the attack. Health Minister V S Sivakumar, who visited the spot, described the attack as part of a high-level conspiracy in the CPM. He said that the house of Union Minister K  C Venugopal in Alappuzha also came under attack around the same time.

 CPM area secretary V K Murali dissociated hinself from the attack and said that it might be the handiwork of a few anti-social elements. Local MLA Koliyakode Krishnan Nair, who flayed the incident, sought a detailed probe.

 A strong posse of police is camping at the spot. The Venjaramood police, led by

Attingal DySP Prasanth, are investigating the case. None has been arrested so far. Panchayat and Social Welfare Minister M K Muneer deplored the attack and felt that it should be viewed as an attack on democracy.

 Meanwhile, a hartal was observed in the Nellanad grama panchayat on Friday, where the house is situated, on a call given by the Congress.