Vehicles blocked, widespread protests; Dalit Congress activist assaulted during hartal

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state hartal called by the action council and dalit tribal organizations to ensure justice in the death of Nithin Raj has led to widespread protests. Hartal supporters blocked KSRTC buses and private vehicles at various places. They also called for shops to close.

As vehicles were blocked, ambulances and others got stuck at Thirunakkara in Kottayam. A fight broke out between protesters and passengers of the bus they blocked at Thampanoor in Thiruvananthapuram. In some places, the police arrested and removed the supporters.

There is also a complaint that a Dalit Congress worker was beaten during the hartal in Kozhikode. The complaint was filed by Aneesh. The incident happened in Ulliyeri. The complaint states that the passengers of the bus that came from Kuttiady beat him. Aneesh said they beat him when he told them that it was hartal and when asked them to cooperate.

Private buses were blocked in Perambra. After protesting for some time, they allowed the buses to pass. The hartal supporters who demonstrated in front of the Kozhikode Commissioner's Office were arrested. Many students who had come to write the VIT (Vellore Institute of Technology) entrance exam were stranded. Many could not reach the exam center.

The hartal which started at 6 am is till 6 pm today. The demands include arrest all those responsible for the death of Nithin Raj, a BDS student of Anjarakandi Dental College, implement Rohith Vemula Act, and a compensation of Rs 10 crore to his family.