RSS worker in custody for bomb attack near Kodiyeri’s meeting venue

Kannur: An RSS worker has been taken on Saturday into custody in connection with the bomb attack near CPI(M) leader Kodiyeri Balakrishnan's meeting venue.

A bomb was on Friday hurled near a public meeting venue of CPI(M) state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan at Kannur in Kerala, with the Left party alleging RSS's involvement in the episode which left a DYFI activist injured. The incident occurred around 7.30 pm at about 200 metres away from the venue, where Balakrishnan was speaking at Nangarathupeedika in New Mahe area of Kannur, police said.

Balakrishnan left the venue shortly after the incident completing his speech, police said, adding the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) activist suffered injury in the incident. "We strongly condemn this. The RSS' game plan is to expand their political base through such violence and communal polarisation which is their standard methodology. The supremely secular people of Kerala will, however, unitedly defeat such machinations," CPI general secretary Sitaram Yechury said.

Strongly condemning the incident, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said in Thiruvananthapuram that strong action would be taken against those responsible for hurling the bomb at the venue.

Meanwhile, BJP has denied the charge, with its Kannur unit refuting the claims of CPI(M) that it was linked to the bomb hurling.

The politically sensitive district witnessed several violent incidents involving the RSS-BJP combine and the CPI(M) after the May 2016 Kerala assembly polls in which the LDF came to power.

In a recent incident on January 18, a 53-year-old BJP worker was stabbed to death at Andaloor in Dharmadam, the constituency of Chief Minister Vijayan, in which six CPI(M) workers have been arrested.