On 24th October 2022, at around 8:30 pm, a group of Islamists attacked a Tamil family in Muvattupuzha in the Ernakulam district of Kerala for celebrating the Hindu festival Deepavali, Organiser reported. The attack was led by one Rafeeq who is a police officer in the Armed Reserve Police, who along with his three accomplices barged into the house of the Tamil family and attacked the members of the family including women and children.
Thankapandyan lives in the marketplace area of Muvattupuzha with his family. His family members include his parents Meena and Bhaskaran, his wife PT Pandyan, and his two kids who are seven and five years old. The family earns their living by cooking and selling snacks. On October 24, the Islamists attacked them because the family burst firecrackers on the occasion of Diwali.
Attackers demolished their stoves while they were cooking Deepavali sweets and snacks. All the family members were brutally beaten as well. The kids, ages five and seven, were slammed to the ground. Bhaskaran was attacked by a small knife, causing him to incur an injury below his eye. A woman’s gold chain was also attempted to be snatched.
The injured, including women, are being treated in hospitals. The Tamil family complained to the police that they had been assaulted for lighting fireworks in celebration of Deepavali. The “Tamilian Collective” complained to the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and the Muvattupuzha Police. Police officers initially refused to register the case as local political leaders took the lead and lured the victim with some compensation money. As the senior police officers arrived, these people left the spot and the case was registered.
The incident is seen with severe concern by the locals. These kinds of acts come as no surprise to anybody because Kerala is a stronghold for religious extremists who enjoy the support of both the Left Democratic Front, led by the CPM government, and the United Democratic Front, led by the opposition Congress.
