Won't interfere in police investigation, says Kerala CM over arrests of two students for Maoist links

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday said that the state government will not tolerate any kind of Maoists activities and the law will take its own course in the case of two students who were arrested by the state police and charged under the UAPA for allegedly having Maoist links.

Replying to the notice of adjournment motion moved by Opposition in the state Assembly demanding discussion on the arrests and NIA case against the students, Allan Shuhaib and Thaha Fasal, Vijayan said: "The CPI-M's stand is very clear. We oppose Maoism and we were against Naxalism too. Everybody knows what Maoists do...The government will not interfere in a police case. The law will take its own course. "

Vijayan said that Mao Zedong did not ask people to snatch others' money or kill them. "Mao never supported such things. The term 'Maoists' is wrong. The extreme Maoists ideas should never be encouraged," the CM said.

Reacting to the Opposition's demand to request National Investigation Agency (NIA) to withdraw the case, the CM told the state Assembly, "During the last United Democratic Front (UDF) tenure, the NIA had taken up seven cases. NIA has taken over Allan and Thaha case on its own and the state government cannot interfere in it. To withdraw the NIA case should I go and plead before Amit Shah (Union Home Minister)? "

The NIA reports to the Union Home Ministry and it can investigate any cases pertaining to national security.

Before staging a walkout for rejecting the adjournment motion, Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala alleged that Pinarayi Vijayan was "speaking like Amit Shah", and said, "Only Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan will praise leaders like Mao Zedong and Joseph Stalin who are responsible for killing many people. Kerala will be the only state which will keep Stalin's photo. His statues are being destroyed by people even in his hometown Georgia."

Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leader MK Muneer, who had moved the adjournment motion in the state Assembly, said that Kerala CM has failed to answer as to why the two students were charged under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).

"Instead of answering it, the Chief Minister is taking classes on Mao and Stalin," said Muneer.