CPI-M workers attack Congress Kerala HQs, Antony present in building

Thiruvananthapuram, June 14 (IANS) In a first of its kind incident, angry CPI-M workers barged into the Congress state party headquarters here on Monday night and smashed advertisement materials and damaged a car even as veteran Congress leader A.K. Antony was present in the premises.

Hearing about the attack, both the CPI-M and the Congress workers took out marches at several places, and some places, there were skirmishes too.

Interacting the media after the incident, Antony said he was reading a book when he heard noise outside.

"I did not go out, but I was told what had happened. The only thing I want to ask... I want to hear what Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and State CPI-M Secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan have to say on this... I don't have anything to say," said Antony.

The incident came amid protests by Congress and BJP activists demanding the resignation of Vijayan over the allegations made by gold smuggling accused Swapna Suresh that Vijayan and his family are involved in smuggling of currency and gold.

Earlier on Monday, three Youth Congress workers protested inside a aircraft against Vijayan as he was returning to the state capital from hometown Kannur.

Following the visuals that came out, it surfaced that the Left Democratic Front convenor and former State Industries Minister E.P. Jayarajan, who was also travelling in the aircraft, pushed down the two protesters, who shouted slogans against Vijayan.

Incidentally, Jayarajan soon after the incident had occurred first told the media that this sloganeering took place after Vijayan had alighted from the aircraft.

Later, the three Congress supporters were arrested.

Hearing about the incident on the party office, State Congress president K. Sudhakaran reached the spot and said all what the three youngsters did was to protest by raising a slogan.

"If Jayarajan has attacked the three of our workers, then he will also have the taste of the same medicine. The CPI-M should not underestimate us as we are least interested to do anything which destroys peace, but we are also capable of doing what the CPI-M often does," he said, adding that to protest this attack, the Congress will observe Tuesday as a "black day".

Meanwhile Vijayan, in a statement, said with the statements of senior Congress leaders on the incident that took place inside the aircraft it's clear that this was a pre-planned one.

"For a while the Congress-led UDF is on a needless protests which is a challenge on the people of Kerala and is meant to destroy peace. The Congress is getting adequate support from the BJP too. My request to all is not to get trapped in these things and to keep away from all such activities," he said.