Thiruvananthapuram, June 12 (BPNS)

Kerala police have forced even elderly people to remove black masks worn as a precaution against Covid , in fear of protest in Malappuram and Thrissur districts as part of security measures for Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan who is in the districts for public programmes.

The Chief Minister’s unprecedented security measures at Kottayam and Ernakulam districts on Saturday had drawn flak from the people but the state police is continuing the same.

On Saturday people returning after treatment at Kottayam medical college hospital was blocked by the police with even children and old men and women not spared. In Kochi, two transgenders who reached at Kochi metro station wearing black clothes and wearing black masks were forcefully taken and dumped into a police vehicle drawing protests. Avantika, the transgender told media persons that she and her friend were boarding the metro train but police forced them out just because they were wearing black dresses.

In Kunnamkulam, Thrissur four youth Congress workers were detained in preventive custody on the possibility of protests against the Chief Minister. The youths were taken into custody from their respective homes in the wee hours of the morning.

Opposition leader and senior Congress leader, V.D. Satheeshan said that Pinarayi Vijayan has turned into a coward and is fearing people of the state. He flayed the Chief Minister for creating woes and sorrow to the common people including women, children, old people who were forced to wait for three to four hours in scorching heat at Kottayam and Ernakulam on Saturday. He said that the same situation was continuing on Sunday in Malappuram and Thrissur districts.

State police deployed 700 policemen including several officers for the two programmes of the Chief Minister at Malappuram district on Sunday. The heavy police security is due to the revelations of the gold smuggling case accused, Swapna Suresh that the Chief Minister and his family including his wife and daughter had links with the gold smuggling racket. This led to protests across the state and the state police and intelligence reported that there could be protests against the Chief Minister who is also holding the charge of the home portfolio and hence the unprecedented security for the Chief Minister.

Since the drubbing of the CPM candidate at Thrikkakara by-elections , the Chief Minister has not the media in person and never answered any query on the defeat even as he led the election campaign from the front.

With the revelations of Swapna Suresh, Chief Minister became totally cut off from the people and travels in an escort of more than sixteen vehicles much to the discomfort of the public.