Kerala: Female ABVP worker locked in room by SFI goons; Attacked her and asked her not to wear rakhi

K Aradhana, a female worker of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), was locked up in a dimly lit room by Students’ Federation of India (SFI) goons in Kannur Government Polytechnic College on October 16 for several hours. They did not allow her to go to the washroom. SFI attacked her for distributing ABVP membership forms  and wearing a rakhi on her wrist.

She was “ordered” to give in writing that what she did was wrong and that she would not get involved in ABVP activities on the campus. ABVP said this action by SFI is a violation of ABVP’s rights. The shocking incident has been reported from the Kannur Government Polytechnic College. K Aradhana, a first-year student of the Textile Department, has complained to the principal about the torture she underwent. Most principals who have run the colleges are pro-CPM persons. Even otherwise, they fear the militant characteristics of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM), Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) and SFI.

The SFI goons abused her indecently and ordered her to remove the rakhi from her wrist. When she asked why, they asserted that it should not be worn in college. They checked her bag and locked her in the room. Aradhana’s father had to come to the campus to release her from captivity. Since the principal was not seen on campus, police had to intervene.

ABVP has protested against the SFI atrocity. Kannur district president Gibin Raj said if the Principal stands for protecting the accused gang, they will take legal action against him. He said ABVP would mobilise students to defend against communist atrocities and violence.

Reports suggest that SFI, Akash Babu, Anuprakash, Swaswat, Manas, Niranjan, Gopika and Sukrita were the attackers. Marxists lead even young girls in the wrong direction. Kannur district is infamous for CPM violence against political opponents. Their top leaders, including Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, were allegedly accused in some of them. Gibin said that democracy had been murdered and buried in Kannur Government Polytechnic a long time back. They attack the workers of other organisations and do not allow them to carry out their activities. These fascist tendencies are spreading to other campuses as well. CPM and their offshoots shout at the top of their voice about women’s safety. The same people assault a girl for carrying out membership activities of her organisation.

Anathema towards Bharatiya and Hindu customs like rakhi, etc., is not strange in Southern Bharat. CPM is more against these values than religious extremists. ABVP workers staged a march to protest against the atrocities against Aradhana. Reports suggest that police have charged cases against some SFI workers as the Principal has not taken any steps.