An Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) worker was stabbed to death at Oravumpuram, near Pandikkad, in the district on Wednesday night.
The police arrested four persons in connection with the murder.
Mohammed Sameer A.V., 26, suffered fatal stab wounds in his stomach when he tried to stop an attacker during a clash between two groups at Oravumpuram. The attack took place around 9.30 p.m. Sameer died in hospital around 11.30 p.m. His relative Hamza was also injured in the attack.
The United Democratic Front (UDF) alleged that the CPI(M) was behind the attack. However, the CPI(M) distanced itself from the incident, saying that it was a fallout of a clash between two families.
The police said that members of two families were involved in Wednesday’s clash, which was the latest in a series of local political face-offs between the UDF and the CPI(M). The stand-off between the CPI(M) and the UDF had begun in the wake of the recent local body elections in which the former had suffered a setback.
The police arrested Moyin Bapu, 47; his son Nisam, 22; Moyin Bapu’s brother Abdul Majeed, 39; and Yasir aka Kunhani, 21; in connection with the attack.
District Police Chief U. Abdul Kareem said the police were investigating all angles. He said that a political quarrel turned into a family attack.
P. Abdul Hameed, MLA, said that it was a planned murder and that the CPI(M) had been trying to terrorise the area since the local body elections. He alleged that the CPI(M) was trying to implement a new agenda by finishing off its political opponents.
CPI(M) district secretary E.N. Mohandas said the murder was the result of a family issue, and that it was never a political attack.
