Kannur: Veena George may not have proven herself to be a good Health Minister, but she has demonstrated that she is a good actress, said former Congress state president and Kannur Lok Sabha member K Sudhakaran.

He alleged that the CPM’s claims that Kerala’s Health Minister was attacked were part of a political drama staged by the party. He said that the visuals being shown in connection with the incident clearly indicate that the claims of assault and injury have no connection with the actual sequence of events.

Veena George said two groups were protesting at the Kannur railway station, and there was a push and shove. She was also seen in visuals charging at the protesters, and police were restraining her. KSU protesters waving a black flag and demanding her resignation were also restrained by the police before they could get anywhere close to the minister.

But when she reached platform 2 to board the Vande Bharat to Thiruvananthapuram, she said she was experiencing pain in her neck. Speaker A N Shamseer, who was with her, said she suffered injuries.

But Sudhakaran said the KSU students carried out their protest in a democratic manner. Eyewitness accounts and available information clearly suggest that the students did not attack the minister and that no act of violence occurred from their side.

“All major visual media outlets in Kerala were present at the scene. Is there any footage on any channel showing KSU students attacking the minister? Even CPM’s Kairali channel was present at the spot. Not a single channel has aired visuals of KSU students assaulting the minister. Instead, the footage shows the minister shouting at the protesters,” said the Congress strongman.

A conspiracy to unleash unrest: Kannur Congress
Kannur District Congress Committee president Martin George said the state government, particularly the Department of Health, was under mounting pressure because of a series of lapses and issues, and the CPM’s allegation that Veena George was assaulted was part of a conspiracy to divert public attention from them.

“The minister was within a police cordon. The protesting KSU workers were restrained by police even before they could get anywhere near her. Visuals also showed the minister openly challenging KSU workers after that,” Martin George said.

According to him, the minister was seen walking away without any apparent difficulty after the incident and was later shifted to the district hospital as per a script allegedly prepared by CPM leaders. “There is a planned attempt to widely propagate the claim that the minister was attacked and to use it to trigger unrest across the state. There is a clear script behind this,” he said.

He also alleged that the injury mark being circulated on CPM-linked social media platforms as evidence of an attack was visible in earlier visuals of the minister as well. “The presence of visual media at Kannur railway station in advance and the manner in which the minister was shifted to the hospital all point to prior planning,” he said, demanding a neutral inquiry into the incident.

He said the assessment must be based on a detailed examination of the protest visuals. “Not even the CPM’s party channel has released any footage showing KSU workers assaulting the minister,” he added. Martin George alleged that the CPM leadership was attempting to manufacture a narrative of violence to overcome an adverse political climate. “People will see through this,” he said.

He added that black-flag protests are part of the democratic process and that physically confronting ministers is not the style of the Congress or its affiliated organisations. “The criminal mindset of CPM workers who once tried to stone Chief Minister Oommen Chandy in Kannur is not shared by Congress workers,” Martin George said.

This is goondaism: K K Shailaja
Former Health Minister K K Shailaja joined the series of CPM leaders in condemning the alleged attack on Veena George. “A physical attack on a minister, that too a woman minister, is grave and unacceptable,” said Shailaja, who was the health minister in the previous LDF government.

“KSU workers rushed in and attacked the minister. This is goondaism. We do not believe it was spontaneous; it appears to have been planned,” she said. “Whoever is leading such protests should immediately end this dangerous course.”

If the opposition has issues, they should raise them in the Assembly, said Shailaja, who represents the Mattannur assembly constituency. “They are not even moving adjournment motions, perhaps fearing that the government would readily allow a discussion. Instead of engaging politically, are they now choosing physical attacks?

Does the UDF believe it can come to power by attacking LDF ministers and workers?” Shailaja said she had not yet met the minister, but she was told she sustained serious injuries to her neck. “Entire society must protest against this,” she said.

Shailaja ruled out that it was a security failure. “When a minister attends a public event, it is not as though the military is deployed. Only routine police security is present. If someone decides to stage a sudden attack, it can happen. The attack is the offence,” she said.