By TCN News,
Kozhikode: The Freedom Parade of the Popular Front of India was banned in all four places in Kerala and the organisation has decided to fight the ban legally. A petition has been filed in the Kerala High Court which will be considered today.
“The ban is pure discrimination,” said P Abdul Hameed, general secretary of the PFI, to TwoCircles.net. “We began organizing the Freedom Parade in 2004 and it was held peacefully. But the next year itself, some came up against it. The Freedom Parade actually made the Independence Day celebrations popular, which was earlier just a hoisting of flag by the ministers. This made our opponents envious of us and they began propaganda against us. Now the police, media and the government are upholding what our enemies are saying.” When asked who the enemies were, Mr Hameed said that enemies included religious and secular parties which got afraid by the popular slogans raised by the PFI. “Our main enemies are the Sangh Parivar-fascist parties. Others who help and uphold their views also are our enemies.”
[Photo Courtesy: http://popularfrontindia.org]
The Freedom Parade was banned last year also, when some alleged members of the PFI were accused to be guilty in the hand-chopping incident. The incident took place on July 4, 2010, when some alleged members of the PFI chopped off the right hand of a college lecturer accused of blasphemy. Widespread raids were carried out in the offices of the PFI and sister organizations, and many workers were arrested.
When asked whether the hand-chopping incident again came up as a reason to ban the parade, Mr Hameed said there was no specific reason for the ban this year. “Last year following the incident, there were some tensions in Aluva and other places we had planned the parade. So, when the government decided to ban the parade, we abode by the decision. But this year, it is pure discrimination and nothing else. The district Collectors who banned the parade have all given different reasons in different districts.” We will fight it legally.”
The parade was to be held at Punalur (Kollam), Thamarassery (Kozhikode), Manjeri (Malappuram) and Chavakkad (Thrissur).
The petition filed in the High Court reportedly says that the ban was a violation of the right to celebrate the Independence Day. Senior lawyer Adv K Ramkumar will be present for the PFI in the court.
The state council of the PFI protested against the ban as condemnable and discriminatory. It is a challenge against the civil right to celebrate the Independence Day, it analysed in the meeting held on Monday.