Congress slams Kerala Police’s handling of post-poll murder

Thiruvananthapuram, April 9 : The Congress-led UDF on Friday cried foul over the course of Kerala Polices probe into the brutal murder of Indian Union Muslim League worker at Kuthuparamba near Kannur, hours after the Tuesdays assembly election.

IUML worker Manzoor, 22, was seriously injured when a gang of two dozen people first threw a bomb at him and then attacked him and his brother with swords and knives at their house near Kuthuparamba.

Manzoor died while being taken to the hospital, while his brother is being treated at a hospital in Kozhikode.Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala alleged that this was a well-planned murder similar to the way the CPI-M planned the murder of former Communist leader T.P.Chandrasekheran."The CPI-M is trying to change the entire case by announcing a Crime Branch probe.

The police are playing foul and even after almost three days, the only person who has been nabbed is the one who was taken into custody by the local people from the place of the crime.After that, the police have not been able to take into custody even a single accused.

We demand that the probe should be headed by an IPS officer," he said.The senior Congress leader said that the party is also going to organise a protest meeting at the site to highlight the "callous manner" in which the probe is being conducted.Kannurs Congress MP K.Sudhakaran alleged the present probe team is headed by the "close aide" of the CPI-M and hence, all can assume which way the probe is heading."We are certain that, the truth will never come out in the present probe.

Just like in a few similar murder cases at Kannur, the CBI will have to be called, with the help of the court," he said.Angry IUML leader P.K.Kunhalikutty said that there is no way that they will accept a probe by a team of police officials "close to the CPI-M"."The criminals who did this are sure that nothing will happen to them, but we are not going to sit idle and we will do everything to bring out the real culprits," he said.