A peaceful demonstration by Youth Congress activists outside the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) office in Pathanamthitta took a violent turn on Tuesday. Protesters, fueled by allegations of gold misappropriation from the sacred Sabarimala Ayyappa temple, clashed fiercely with law enforcement.
The march commenced around 11 a.m., but police, strategically placed approximately 100 meters from the TDB office, used barricades to block their path. Undeterred, the determined activists broke through the barriers, stormed the office premises, and caused damage to windows by pelting coconuts.
Amidst the escalating scuffle, Congress leader Sandeep Varier, who was at the forefront of the protest, also found himself in a confrontation with the police. The situation intensified as activists fiercely resisted attempts by the police to arrest and remove them from the scene. In a striking display of defiance, several Youth Congress workers climbed atop a police vehicle where their detained comrades were being held, continuing their protest.
Mr. Varier vehemently accused the police of targeting him and other leaders with baton charges. Despite the confrontation, he declared defiantly, “We will not back down; our protest will continue.”
The police action drew sharp criticism from prominent figures including Pathanamthitta MP Anto Antony and District Congress Committee president Satheesh Kochuparambil.
“The Congress party will not be intimidated by such police repression. We demand that all individuals responsible for the alleged sale of gold from Sabarimala be brought to justice,” asserted Mr. Antony.
This incident follows a separate protest on Monday, where Youth Congress activists demonstrated against the arrest of a Kerala Students Union (KSU) member from Catholicate College in Pathanamthitta. The student’s arrest came after clashes between KSU and Students’ Federation of India (SFI) activists, with charges including attempted murder leveled against the KSU student.