CM: No atrocity against fish vendor

Thiruvananthapuram: Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday told the assembly that the hullabaloo on social media about police atrocities against a streetside fish vendor near Kalluvathukkal on the Parippally-Varkkala national highway was a stage managed one.
In reply to a submission by opposition MLA C R Mahesh, the chief minister said the police report on the incident refuted the allegations that police had thrown away fish worth Rs 15,000 of a fish vendor named Mary.
“The police report says that no such incident has happened. It is true that the Covid caseload in Kalluvathukkkal area is high and is currently listed in category D. Owing to the instances of overcrowding complaints from people, police had asked the fish vendors to leave the place,” he said.
However, the government has asked the police chief to inquire into the complaints and submit a report, the chief minister said.
In his submission, Mahesh said that police were mistreating and penalising people in the name of Covid restrictions and the same could not be accepted. “At a time when people are finding it hard to make both ends meet, any restrictions and precautions should be for the good of people. It should not end up as an opportunity to punish people,” he said.