Jaitley calls RSS worker's murder 'barbaric'

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday visited the family of an RSS activist murdered by suspected CPI-M workers in Kerala and called it a "barbaric" crime that would have "even embarrassed a terrorist".

"Rajesh had 89 wounds on his body. The kind of wounds inflicted would have even embarrassed a terrorist," Jaitley said after meeting the family members of E. Rajesh, 34, who was hacked to death a week ago.

"It is cruelty of a barbaric nature... Even an enemy country wouldn't do this kind of brutality but a political party did this," the Bharatiya Janata Party leader added.

"You have a series of these incidents in which a large number of political workers are being killed, party offices have been attacked, our President of the state unit got saved by a whisker.

"We will not forget this heinous act. I am here to express my solidarity on behalf of our party," he added.

Jaitley, who drove from the airport to Rajesh's home, met his wife, two children and other family members.

He then addressed a commemorative meeting where he accused the government and police of being "mute spectators" and said the killings were targeted murders and not scuffles leading to violence.

"Governments are elected to do good for the people," he said. "But in Kerala the ruling party is perpetrating violence on the people. This type of ideology won't crush our ideology."

The minister complained that had some something similar happened in a BJP-ruled state, there would have been a hue and cry.

"Every time the LDF (Left Democratic Front) is in power, incidents of violence increase... What is needed now is neutrality by police.

"We need political will and determination by the state government to discipline its own cadre rather let them loose on the political opponents," he said.

He said the BJP will support the families of workers who have been killed by Marxists.

On a day's visit to Kerala, Jaitley was received at the airport by leaders of the BJP in the state.

Also on Sunday, the CPI-M organised a sit-in protest in front of the Raj Bhavan, the official residence of the Governor P. Sathasivam, asking Jaitley to also visit the families of its cadres allegedly killed by BJP and RSS workers.

Anavoor Nagappan, the Thiruvananthapuram District Secretary of the CPI-M, told the media that those on protest included 21 family members of their activists killed in the state from 1980.

"Jaitley should not just restrict his visit to just the RSS worker's home. All these people who are sitting here have lost their near and dear ones to BJP and RSS workers," he said.

Those who joined the protest included state CPI-M Secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan and LDF Convenor Vaikom Viswam.

Jaitley offered to meet families of Left activists who too have suffered violence.

"The kind of argument which is being propounded which I have read in a section of media that there are victims on all sides.

"This fake equivalence which is sought to be brought between the perpetrators of crime and victims, if the argument is eventually to rely on this fake equivalence, that attitude will not being violence to an end.

"Kerala needs peace and it deserves peace," Jaitley added.

--IANS

sg-ao/mr/vd