The video footage showed three Congress activists destroying the publicity materials for ‘Poovili’, a cultural program organized in connection with Onam festival at Ponkunnam.Kanjirappally: In what appears to be an instance of factional feud in the Congress, a group of party workers were caught on CCTV camera tearing off flex boards and posters erected in and around Kanjirappally by the rival faction.
The video footage showed three Congress activists destroying the publicity materials for ‘Poovili’, a cultural program organized in connection with Onam festival by the Kottayam district committee of Jawahar Balajana Vedi, the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee’s cultural wing for school students, at Ponkunnam.
The culprits, reportedly an office-bearer of the Congress block committee, member of Youth Congress block committee and a ward president, were not aware that their action under the cover of darkness was being captured on a CCTV camera.
The party unit, which would have gone to the extent of calling a hartal to protest the incident, found itself on a sticky wicket after the footage went viral on social media.
The incident took place on the night of August 31. Banners and posters erected at mini civil station area, Puthanangadi, Kurisunkal junction were also found destroyed.
The gang mainly targeted banners that carried the images of Youth Congress Pathanamthitta parliament committee secretary Ranju Thomas and DCC general secretary Shins Peter.
Photographs of former chief minister Oommen Chandy, KPCC president M. M. Hassan, MLAs Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, and K. C. Joseph, Anto Antony MP, and P. A. Saleem were also torn off from some of the flex boards.
Following the incident, Youth Congress constituency committee vice-president and program organizing committee member Sibu Devasia filed a police complaint. As part of the investigation, the police examined visuals caught on CCTVs of shops in the area and identified the miscreants.
The footage showed one of the party workers standing on a motorbike and tearing down posters and flex boards put up on an electric pole.
The incident is said to be the outcome of bitter feuds in the local Congress A faction.
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