Kannur
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Violent politics
The Times of India, May 16 2016
Rajesh Menon
In Kannur, Kerala's political killing field, where the only religion they know is the party colour, it is always a feeling of when, rather than how, violence will start again. C Sadanandan Master, BJP's candidate from Koothuparamba lost both his legs in the political violence. Kannur's tale of blood and gore over ideologies began in the 1970s with bombs, swords, knives and axes. Since then close to 300 have been killed and over 500 injured.
It has mainly been a bloody game of red vs saffron. “It's always `our dead and maimed vs their dead and maimed,“ says a veteran journalist and political observer.
Mostly low-level party workers or supporters are targeted, the list drawn up randomly to quickly settle the score after every attack.
If local worker 32-year-old Biju of Kathiroor Panchayat survived two attacks, 32 cuts and slashes across his body and nearly a year of hospitalisation including at the Kozhikode Medical College, he believes it is “because of a miracle“. This was nine years ago [2009] and today Biju hobbles around, his left arm rendered useless, with the help of painkillers. His youth lost to violence, Biju has no regrets. “Those who attacked me have been thrown out by CPM from the party . I call this divine justice,“ he says.
CPM neta from Thalassery V K Suresh Babu, the 60-year-old retired headmaster of a local school, who survived an attempt to murder with 12 cuts on his body and whose `dying' declaration was recorded by a magistrate in 1999, says Kannur residents have be come used to the violence. “We're willing to die for the party. It comes from the heart and can't be taken away . But the supporters and sympathisers of either side bear the brunt,“ he says.
