SFI flouts CM's diktat; Onam revelry brings traffic to a halt in Kerala capital
Synopsis
The traffic was stalled for over an hour in the unannounced Onam procession taken out by University College Students in Kerala Capital. Vehicles including ambulances were caught up in the commotion. Police registered a case against thousand students for disrupting traffic.
Despite Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's strict instruction that Onam celebrations should not cause inconvenience to public, the Students Federation India (SFI), the CPM-backed students union, took traffic to a grinding halt in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday by taking out a procession onto the streets.
The Onam festivities under the aegis of the SFI at the University College in the heart of the capital city was taken to the streets on Thursday much to the headache of the police. The revellers created traffic confusion for over an hour in the heart of the city. Though the police asked the students not to block vehicles, the students paid no attention and occupied the main road with dance and songs. The students carried the flags of the SFI along with symbols of Onam.
The celebrations began from the University College premises to Secretariat in the afternoon accompanied by percussion and other festivities. Vehicles including ambulances were caught up in the melee.
The Cantonment police later booked nearly thousand students for causing public nuisance and for taking out a procession without prior permission.
Meanwhile, SFI state president Jayek C Thomas said the students might have taken out the celebration outside the college on popular demand, but distanced the organisation from the whole episode.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had aired his resentment over celebrating festivals causing hardship to the public. The government also issued an order last week directing govt. employees not to celebrate Onam during office hours.