Turmoil engulfed Lakshadweep when its administrator decided to block a road passing through the compound of his official residence.
NEW DELHI: Turmoil engulfed Lakshadweep ahead of President APJ Abdul Kalam’s proposed visit to the archipelago when its administrator decided to block a road passing through the compound of his official residence.
On October 24, Rajendra Kumar, an IAS officer administering the island, ordered the authorities to block the road and begin building a wall around Government House. Kumar left for Delhi after issuing the order.
Several local residents and official sources told DNA that Kumar’s decision caused chaos to course through the island. The road that he was planning to block leads to an old Muslim graveyard, which is the burial site of several spiritual leaders revered by locals.
As tension built up, the local administration imposed prohibitory orders, curtailing people’s movement. And, according to residents and official sources, brutal police action followed. “The police unleashed mayhem,” said UCK Thangal, president and chief councillor of the district council.
“They beat students going to school. Several of them were injured. The police barged into homes and dragged people out. They picked up 18 people, at least three of them minors.”
Thangal said the rule of law does not hold much sway in Lakshadweep. “It is all about the ego of the police and administration,” he said. Thangal has been leading an all-party protest against Kumar’s actions.
The troubles subsided on Tuesday when the administration decided to reopen the road. But a senior island official told DNA that construction of the wall would continue: “We will work out a way with the local people.”
He argued that since Kumar’s wife and two young daughters live in Government House, it is important to ensure that the property is made secure.
Kumar was unavailable for comment despite repeated attempts to contact him through on Wednesday.
A senior official in Delhi, however, was concerned by the manner in which the crisis was precipitated. “Such acts are dangerous,” he told DNA. “We cannot allow an official to behave like an autocrat.”
Government House has been the official residence of the archipelago’s administrators for the past two decades. “My father was MP for over 40 years,” said Hamdula Sayeed, Congress leader and son of the late Union power minister PM Sayeed. “There was never such an untoward incident in his lifetime.”
The Delhi-based Hamdula, an advocate, has approached the Union home ministry with a representation from some Lakshadweep residents.
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