Contaminated Cannon Water Becomes Political Weapon in Kerala Assembly
Chennithala pointed out that water cannons had been used before in Kerala to disperse protestors
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala police may have used water cannons against protesters countless times during his ten-year tenure, but on Monday, former Chief Minister and current opposition leader Pinarayi Vijayan took on a different role in the Kerala assembly.
He arrived with a bottle of contaminated water that police had used to disperse All India Students Federation (AISF) and All India Youth Federation (AIYF) activists protesting against the PM Shri scheme in front of Kerala assembly. Pinarayi voiced concern over the use of such water, reminding the government about the spread of water-borne diseases in the state, especially the Shigella virus and cholera.
While demanding a response from Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala, the opposition leader urged the government to take the issue seriously and initiate corrective measures.
Chennithala pointed out that water cannons had been used before in Kerala to disperse protestors. He subtly reminded Pinarayi Vijayan that during his tenure, there had been disproportionate use of water cannons and police force against demonstrators. He claimed the water used on the protestors came from Kerala Water Authority (KWA) facility, though it could have been sourced from an old tanker.
The home minister clarified that the contaminated water was not intentionally used in the cannon and assured members that samples would be sent to the government laboratory for further examination.
He said the City Police Commissioner has been directed to get the water samples tested as soon as possible. He assured that the matter would be taken seriously and that extra precautions would be put in place to prevent such incidents from happening again.
CPI leader and former Revenue Minister K Rajan, who inaugurated the AISF-AIYF protest, said his party and front organisations were not afraid of facing water cannons or even gunfire. However, the contaminated water was so bad it even changed the colour of the protesters’ clothes.
Speaker Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan shared his own experience of facing a water cannon and told members that discussions on the issue would continue after receiving the lab reports.
