Munnar row: Sub collector Sreeram Venkatraman gets minister E Chandrashekharan's pat

Thiruvananthapuram: Devikulam sub collector Sreeram Venkatraman who has taken a firm stand against encroachments in Munnar got a shot in the arm with Revenue Minister E Chandrashekharan congratulating him on his bold action against encrochers. The minister asked the sub collector to go ahead with the anti encroachment drive in Munnar. He extended all support of the government and said the LDF government’s police was to remove all encroachments in Idukki district.

The sub collector had removed the encroachments on ten cents of land adjacent to the RDO office in Devikulam on Wednesday. Despite facing abusive and hostile CPM workers, the sub collector went ahead with his decision to remove the encroachments. The police remained a silent spectator despite the officer directing them to arrest the CPM local leader who had assaulted a Public Land Protection Force (PLPF) member.

The sub collector will submit a detailed report to Collector on the incidents that took place on Wednesday. Action against policemen will be decided on the basis of this report. The revenue minister’s support came at a time when CPM leaders including Power Minister M M Mani and local MLA S Rajendran are issuing open threats to the officer. At the local level the CPM had organised protests demanding his removal.