By TCN News,
Kannur: When accusations and counter-accusations rule the political sphere of Kerala, the new accusation is against Central Minister and Muslim League national president E Ahmed. CPI (M) Kannur district secretary P Jayarajan accused that E Ahmed had helped a blast-suspect to escape from the country. The Muslim League yesterday refuted the accusation as cheap and aimed at political exploitation.
Muslim League Kannur district leadership stated that the CPI (M) was worried in the acceptance that E Ahmed was receiving as a good parliamentarian and a pure secularist in the Indian government and in international venues. E Ahmed had explained when the accusation came up earlier itself that he did not know the two persons, Shafeeq and Rafeeq, who are said to have been helped by him.
CPI (M) leader P Jayarajan had accused on Tuesday that a comprehensive investigation should be conducted on the terrorist relations of E Ahmed in the wake of the bomb blast at Nadapuram in Kozhikode, in which five suspected Muslim League members were killed while making bombs. Shafeeq of Kannur, who is accused in the Bengaluru blast case, Kalamassery bus-burning case and Raheem Pookkadassery murder attempt case, etc, is a relative of E Ahmed. It has been accused earlier itself that an emergency passport was arranged via E Ahmed to help him escape from arrest. Shafeeq is still absconding. It is also said that Shafeeq’s neighbor and friend Fasalul Haq also has terrorist links. There are allegations that Fasal, who is presently in Bahrain, holds an Indian passport and has connections with the ISI, uses to visit Pakistan, Mr Jayarajan said, according to reports.
While Mr Jayarajan accuses Mr Ahmed of helping Shafeeq, said to be a close associate of prime-accused in Bengaluru blast Thadiyantavide Naseer, there are also unconfirmed reports that Naseer was helped by political leaders in different times. Naseer is accused in several cases such as the murder attempt on CPI (M) leader and former Chief Minister EK Nayanar in 1999, murder of Azad and Vinod in Kannur, Kalamassery bus-burning, Kashmir recruitment case and the Coimbatore bomb blast case. Naseer was caught by the police in 2007 August, but he escaped, according to reports. UDF convener PP Thankachan accused in a press conference in December 2009 that Naseer was arrested but released upon a phone call, though he refused to say who made the phone call. It is said that Naseer was in Kannur when the news came about the death of four Keralites in Kashmir which led to police investigation in the Kashmir recruitment case. Though accused and suspect in many cases, Naseer was said to be living in Kannur where all these cases were charged against him. And during this time, both the UDF and the LDF had been in power also. This raises doubts that he was helped and supported by some high power or powers. He was caught finally in early November 2009 from Bangladesh, according to reports, though officially he was arrested on December 2.
Tomin J Thachankari, the then Kannur range IG who was in charge of the Kashmir recruitment case initially, is now under suspension for allegedly going abroad without the permission of the government. The high-ranking police officer is also said to have met some persons with terrorist connections abroad and is under investigation. It is to be noted that the same officer is said to have escorted CPI (M) general secretary Pinarayi Vijayan in his gulf trip. The suspects arrested in the Kashmir recruitment case were initially under the charge of Mr Thachankari, though the state had an ATS wing led by DIG TK Vinod Kumar. Thachankari even flew to Bengaluru to interrogate Thadiyantavide Naseer and other Keralite suspects, which is seen as a way to keep the state ATS away from the interrogation. After his suspension, Thachankari was reportedly questioned by the NIA in September last year.
Though it is clear from the accusations and counter-accusations of political leaders that they have connections with men of criminal background, it is hard to understand why all these accusations come up only when elections are round the corner. It can also be noted that if those raising accusations are sincere they have the chance to seriously investigate the matters, since the LDF and the UDF have been coming to power in alternative Assembly elections in the state for quite some time.