KL This Week: Kerala High Court Bans RSS Drills on Devaswom Board Temple Premises

NewsClick brings you a round-up of the key developments across Kerala during the week, including the containment and tracking measures carried out by the health department after the Nipah outbreak, the conclusion of the Assembly session with key Bills passed and the High Court of Kerala’s refusal to allow hoisting of saffron flags in temples under the control of the Devaswom board. 

NIPAH OUTBREAK: 100 CONTAINMENT ZONES

The number of Nipah cases has increased to four and two people have died due to the infection. The Kozhikode district administration has announced stringent measures to contain the spread as 100 containment zones have been identified. Besides, nine village panchayats, 38 wards in Feroke Municipality, and nine wards of Kozhikode Corporation were containment zones as of 8 pm on September 15. A total of 1,080 people, including 122 healthcare workers and 29 people from Thrissur, Wayanad, Malappuram, and Kannur have been found to have had contact with the persons who have tested positive for the viral infection and are under observation. 

The central team led by scientists from the National Institute of Virology (NIV), Kerala unit is visiting Kallad, where the first positive case was reported. 

Minister for Health, Women and Child Development Veena George stated that the government has decided to test all the people under the high-risk category, i.e. with some comorbidities to ensure their safety. The minister has advised 21 days of isolation for people who test negative. 

The educational institutions in Kozhikode will remain closed for one more week to contain the outbreak and are advised to shift to an online mode of education until the viral scare ends. 

ASSEMBLY SESSION CONCLUDES

The Assembly session, which was interrupted due to the announcement of Puthuppally by-election, concluded on September 15 after four days. The United Democratic Front (UDF), an opposition group, submitted an adjournment motion regarding the Solar case, in which former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy was allegedly implicated. Interestingly, this motion coincided with the swearing-in ceremony of Chandy Oommen, who secured a historic victory in the Puthuppally Assembly constituency.

The ninth session of the Assembly passed several Bills including the Kerala Healthcare Service Persons and Healthcare Service Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage to Property) Amendment Bill, 2023 to ensure protection for hospitals and health workers. Another Bill, Kerala Government Land Assignment (Amendment) Bill, 2023 which enables construction in title lands, was also cleared.

NO PERMISSION FOR SAFFRON FLAGS IN THE TEMPLE 

The High Court of Kerala denied permission to hoist saffron flags inside temple premises. The order was passed on a petition filed by two devotees demanding permission to hoist flags and festoons on the premises of the Muthupilakkadu Sree Parthasarathy temple in Kollam. The Sangh Parivar organisations led by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) have been accused of attempting to appropriate temples for political activities and gains.

In another setback to the Sangh Parivar outfits, the court also banned mass drills and training in temple premises by the members of the RSS. The order was passed on a case filed by devotees of Sarkara Devi temple, Chirayunkeezh in Thiruvananthapuram. The RSS was reportedly holding Shakas in the temple premises under the control of the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB). 

PROTEST AGAINST COMMENTS ON KELTRON BY CONGRESS MLA

The Keltron Employees Association, affiliated to the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), held a protest against former home minister and senior Congress leader Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan on September 14 for his comments on the capability of the organisation in the state Assembly.

The Association accused the former minister of downplaying the achievements of the organisation by stating that the organisation is incapable of even manufacturing a screw. The president of the union and Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] MLA Kadakampally Surendran demanded an apology from Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan.

The members of the Keltron Employees Association took out a march to the Kerala Legislative Assembly and burned the effigy of Congress leader Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan. 

WIDESPREAD RAINFALL ACROSS THE STATE

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued yellow alerts to seven districts namely Ernakulam, Idukki, Thrissur, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur, and Kasaragod on September 16 and Idukki, Malappuram, Kannur, Kasaragod districts on September 17. The state has been receiving widespread rainfall since the beginning of September due to the low-pressure area over the Bay of Bengal.