Members of a local action committee seeking closure of a poultry waste processing unit in Ambayathoda intensified their agitation and decided to go ahead with a relay hunger strike.
The agitation began on Thursday with Karshaka Congress district president and former Kattippara panchayat president Biju Kannanthara starting an indefinite fast at Ambalamukku, nearly 2 km from the power plant.
Officials of the action committees said that more members would join the commotion in the coming days. They alleged that the plant had been causing pollution in four panchayats for the past six years.
Mr. Kannanthara had recently alleged that Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police Yathish Chandra conspired with the power plant management to quell local protests. After the October 21 violence, he also sought a comprehensive probe into his complaint submitted to the state police chief alleging suspicious phone conversations and meetings between the company management and the DIG.
The former local head also alleged that his complaint against the DIG was handed over to a subordinate officer, making a fair investigation impossible. In his repeated petition to the President of the State Police, he demanded the appointment of a superior to enable an impartial investigation of the complaint.
Thampi Parakandathi, the chief patron of the action committee, claimed that a recent Special Investigation Team report for the Kerala High Court wrongly portrayed the committee’s leaders as “criminals”. He claimed that the leaders and members of the committee were all locals with no criminal background who had voluntarily joined the protest.
According to one of the senior local coordinators of the protest, the police recently published a list of 92 people booked in connection with the violence near the factory. He said several suspects were reluctant to come forward for questioning, fearing they might be charged with other offenses under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, as had allegedly happened to others.
Local coordinators also claimed that around 300 residents were forced to leave their homes due to “door-to-door police searches” targeting people allegedly associated with banned organizations. They warned that if the situation worsened, they would be forced to start an indefinite agitation outside the Kozhikode Civil Station.
It was on October 21 that the factory was closed following arson and violence incited by a restive group within the Action Committee.
Published – 13 Nov 2025 20:24 IST
