Law in order, says CM Pinarayi Vijayan

Thiruvananthapuram: Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said there was a concerted effort to disrupt the law and order situation in the state. While replying to an adjournment motion by N. A. Nellikkunnu of the IUML in the assembly on Thursday, he attacked the opposition for generalising isolated incidents. He quoted official figures to stress that there was no room for concern and Kerala is far ahead of others in women safety.

"The murder cases are an important indicator," he said citing Crime Records Bureau figures that number came down from 368 in 2012 to 302 last year. "Kerala reported the least number of caste and communal clashes in the country and its number went down from 37 in 2012 to six last year." The opposition walked out after crossing swords with the treasury benches over the law and order situation.

The opposition claimed that the state had become a "paradise" for criminals, and the "highly politicised" police forces were "inactive". Mr  Nellikkunnu while seeking permission for an adjournment motion said they were not registering a crime in most cases the guilty brought before the law. "Criminals have a free rein in the state," he said.  Opposition Leader Ramesh Chennithala said there were 20 cases of political violence after the LDF came to power 20 months back.

Speaker P. Sreeramakrishnan refused to allow a debate after Mr Vijayan's reply. Bus charge hike: The chief minister has hinted at a bus fare hike. While replying to questions in the assembly, he said diesel price hike had severely hit  transport industry. "The bus owners had requested to increase the bus charges during a meeting as there was no other alternative. Otherwise, they have threatened to go on an indefinite strike," he said.