Coimbatore: Three Maoists fast in prison

Coimbatore: At least three of the five suspected Maoists lodged in Coimbatore Central Prison went on a day’s fast on Friday protesting against the ‘encounter killing’ of two Maoists in Kerala.

Prison Sources told Deccan Chronicle, that the ‘Thunderbolt’ anti-Maoist squad of the Kerala police had opened fire against Maoists recently in the forest area near Nilambur district in that state, killing two Maoist leaders including a woman.
Kuppu alias Devaraj a central committee member of CPI (Maoist), and Ajitha, a state-level leader from Tamil Nadu were both shot down in the operation.

Protesting against this episode, three Maoists under-trial prisoners, Roopesh, Veeramani and Anoop staged a hunger-strike in the prison here, refusing to take breakfast and lunch. The two others of the group, Shyna and Kannan did not take part in the fast, as they were not feeling well, said a police source.

The fast was to highlight their demand for a magisterial probe into the encounter deaths in Kerala, violating human rights and to condemn the killing of Devaraj and Ajitha. The fasters also demanded that the Kerala police lodge a complaint against the encounter.