Dawn to dusk protests called by Dalit organizations on Tuesday in Kerala against alleged police inaction in the suicide case of a Dalit dental student at a Kannur university have disrupted normal life in several parts of the state.
The Kerala High Court ordered registration of a suo motu case over the reported clashes between those who supported the bandh, members of the public and police in several parts. A leave bench of Justices Basant Balaji and P Krishna Kumar posted the matter for further consideration on May 1.
The State Counsel informed the High Commission that 27 cases had been registered as of 3pm on Tuesday and 91 people had been arrested in connection with the squad.
Dalit organizations and an action council formed in the name of the deceased Dalit student called for the bandh to put forward a set of demands including $10 crore compensation to the victim’s family, arrest of the accused faculty members who allegedly harassed the student on the basis of caste and colour, and cancellation of the accreditation of the dental college.
The clash led to clashes between protesters and police in several areas including Thiruvananthapuram, Kannur, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta.
Those supporting the movement disrupted traffic on major roads in cities including Thiruvananthapuram, causing inconvenience to people, including those heading to hospitals for emergency medical procedures and students heading to take main competitive exams.
KT Sangeetha Nambiar, the second accused on charges of abetting the student’s suicide, appeared before the Special Investigation Court in Kannur and was immediately arrested.
She was interrogated for hours. She was later released on bail as a local court in Thalassery accepted her anticipatory bail plea. The court accepted her argument that she was not present in the college principal’s room where the student was summoned on the day he died by suicide.
