The Kerala Police Officers Association (KPOA) and the Kerala Police Association (KPA) have decried the attack on police personnel by migrant workers employed by Kitex Garments at Kizhakkambalam on Sunday morning.
“We condemn the attack on personnel engaged in law and order duty. The government must extend full support to the police in such situations, including by bearing the treatment expense of the injured personnel. There should be no leniency towards the attackers,” said K.P. Praveen, KPA general secretary.
Police teams who arrived at a migrant workers’ camp to prevent a clash from going out of control were attacked in a primitive manner.
The situation at Kizhakambalam would have taken a turn for the worse if more personnel had not arrived and rescued the injured personnel with the help of residents of the locality.
Organised attack
General secretary of the KPOA C.R. Biju said the factory management — which arranged accommodation for its workers — was responsible for their conduct. There was no use blaming workers alone for “procuring drugs”.
This was the first time that migrant workers in Kerala unleashed such an organised attack on police personnel. The probe must cover who motivated them to indulge in such a blatant attack on the police, he said.
DCC flays attack
The Ernakulam DCC flayed the attack on police personnel and termed it an aftermath of the “arrogant attitude” of the factory management “which has challenged the law of the land”.
The management was duty bound to keep tabs on workers who might have been using drugs, said DCC president Mohammed Shiyas.
He said its MD Sabu Jacob must be held responsible for the violent incidents. The attack could have been averted if the police and the government had acted on frequent complaints about the conduct of a section of workers.
