Centre seeks report on BJP office attack

Thiruvananthapuram: The centre has sought a report from the LDF government on the attack against the BJP state committee office here on Tuesday midnight. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh spoke to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on the issue even as BJP supporters  obseved a black day on Thursday in protest against the attack. A delegation of BJP MPs will visit  the state soon to study the situation. Mr Rajnath Singh  expressed the Union government’s concern  over the incident and asked the chief minister not to turn a blind eye to the attacks against BJP activists.

Demanding  stringent action against the culprits,  Mr Rajnath said  that complaints of sporadic violence targeting BJP men had  been received. On Wednesday, Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Nirmala Sitharaman, had alleged that the attack was targeted against BJP state president Kummanam Rajasekharan. In fact, Mr  Kummanam had left the state committee office at 9.30 p.m. well before the attack took place at midnight. Nirmala Sitharaman sought a probe into the attacks on saffron activists which have steadily risen after the LDF came to power in May.

Country bombs were hurled at the office at Kunnukuzhy by a bike-borne man. The BJP alleged  that the CPM was  behind the attack but the CPM has denied it. Mr Kummanam had alerted the centre about the repeated attacks in Kannur district against the BJP and RSS supporters.  The violence has now spread to the capital city.  Kerala Governor P. Sathasivam has also expressed his anguish over the attack.

It is biggest comedy of the year, says E P Jayarajan

Industries Minister E. P. Jayarajan on Thursday criticised the Union government’s demand that the state give an explanation on the attack on the BJP office in Thiruvananthapuram. “It is the biggest ever comedy of the year,” he said. “The centre should maintain its standards in dealing with such issues. The BJP leaders will have to remember that their acts will be accountable and someday apologise for the same.”

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has spoken to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on the incident that took place on Tuesday night, Mr Jayarajan said after inaugurating vendor development programme by the Kerala State Small Industries Association here.